Cyrus McCormick's mechanical reaper, invented in 1831 and patented in 1834, made its creator fantastically rich. It also helped transform the Midwest into America's breadbasket. Before the mechanical reaper, wheat was harvested by hand. McCormick's horse-drawn machine could cut more wheat in a day than could half a dozen men. But it wasn't just the reaper's power that made McCormick successful. He used newspaper advertising, product warranties, and installment sales to boost reaper sales. And he had the good sense to move his manufacturing operation from his home state of Virginia to Chicago, Illinois, at the edge of some of the richest farmland in the world. |
