history

Already in 1908, W. Chandler Knapp saw the need for an orchard tractor. Knapp was a prominent fruit grower near Rochester, New York. Several different models appeared in the following years, and Knapp made some attempts to market them. By 1913, the Knapp Farm Locomotive was proving itself, and plans were made to relocate to Minneapolis, Minnesota. The move was made in 1914, the Gray Tractor Company was organized, and the model known as the Gray tractor was placed on the market. its first demonstration in the Middle West was at the Power Farming Demonstration at Fremon, Nebraska in August 1914. For the 1916 season, two Gray tractor models were offered, the 20-35 and the 15-25. Joseph W. Gray was president of the firm. Originally it was known as Gray tractor Manufacturing Company. In May 1917, the corporation was reorganized for $2 million and “Manufacturing” was dropped from the corporate name. Production was then confided to the 18-30 model. A further reorganization followed in April 1925. After this time, the 22-40 Canadian Special was the only model available, and production ended entirely by 1933.