The Rise and Fall of International Harvester: How One Hire Destroyed an 80-Year Empire

In 1902, JP Morgan's youngest partner walked into a room and merged five companies into one. International Harvester controlled 85% of every harvesting machine sold in America. It built the tractor that replaced the horse. It employed 125,000 people across 47 factories on five continents.

Then the board hired a man from Xerox who had never sold a tractor, never spoken to a farmer, and never set foot on a dealer lot. Three years later, the company had lost $2.4 billion. The farm equipment division sold to a Texas oil conglomerate. The name disappeared.

This is how America's greatest farm empire was built, and how it was destroyed.

Sources and Further Reading:

Wisconsin Historical Society. "International Harvester Company." Dictionary of Wisconsin History.
https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS1822
Britannica. "Cyrus McCormick: American Industrialist and Inventor."
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cyrus-McCormick
Marsh, Barbara. "A Corporate Tragedy: The Agony of International Harvester Company." Doubleday, 1985.
Encyclopedia Virginia. "International Harvester Company (1902–1985)."
https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/international-harvester-company-1902-1985/
Traton Group / Navistar. "The History of International Harvester and Navistar."
https://www.traton.com/en/brands/navistar.html

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