When Was the Iron Plow Invented?

Iron tipped plows have been around for centuries. For nearly as long as humans have known how to use and manipulate iron they have done so for their agricultural instruments. It is not until the mid 1800s, however, that cast-iron plows were commonly used or commercially viable.

Chinese Plows

Scholars say that the first iron plows were used in China during the Warring States period (475-221 B.C.). They were pushed by hand instead of by animals.

European Plows

The first significant use of iron plows in Europe originated with Joseph Foljambe's Rotherham Swing Plow in the early 1600s.

American Plows

Until the 1800s, American plows looked much like ancient ones: iron-tipped sticks that scratched furrows into the ground. Jethro Wood, Charles Newbold and David Peacock all marketed inventions designed to improve the plows, but none gained notoriety or success.

John Deere

John Deere invented the first self-scouring cast-iron plow in 1837 for use in tough soil. It held great benefits because the parts of the cast-iron plow could be removed and replaced as opposed to purchasing a new plow.

Modern Plows

While all of the previously mentioned plowed were pulled and pushed by people and/or animals, most modern farming today is done by pulling steel plow sets behind tractors. Though more primitive forms of farming still exist in the developing world.

References

• Chinese Plows
• European Plows
• History of Plows