The Harris Harvester - San Joaquin County Historical Museum

The San Joaquin
Historian
Quarterly Journal of
The San Joaquin County Historical Society
Volume IX, New Series, Number 1
Spring 1995
This Issue ... Robert Shellenberger Editor Published by The San Joaquin County Historical Society, Inc. Micke Grove Regional Park p.o. Box 30 Lodi CA 95241 - 0030 (209) 331-2055 (209) 953-3460 Gary Christopherson
Craig Rasmussen
Elise Austin Forbes
Robert F. McMaster
Alan H. Johnson
Olive Davis
Robert Shellenberger
Timothy J. Hachman
President
President-Elect
Secretary
Vice-President
Vice-President
Vice-President
Vice-President
Past President
The Society, a non-profit corporation, meets the
fourth Monday monthly except July, August
and December. Membership includes
subscriptions to the San Joaquin Historian and
the monthly newsletter, News and Notes.
Additional copies may be purchased at the
Museum.
The Society operates the San Joaquin County
Historical Museum at Micke Grove Regional
Park in partnership with San Joaquin County.
The Society maintaIns an office at the Museum.
Manuscripts relating to the history of San
Joaquin County or the Delta will always be
considered. The editor reserves the rignt to
shorten material based on local interest and
space considerations. Inquiry should be made
through the Museum office.
San Joaquin County Historical Society and Museum Michael W. Bennett Director © 1995 San Joaquin County Historical Society, Inc.
Page 2
In telling the important story of George Harris and the
Harris Harvester, Bill Biddick takes us back to the era when
Stockton was the second largest manufacturing center in
California (after San Francisco); an era when Stockton
industrialists were on the cutting edge of the mechanical
revolution in agricultural.
Wheat was what San Joaquin County was all about in the
last century. Flour mills lined Stockton Channel. Over 1,000
vessels per year were carrying Valley produce and Stockton
machinery to San Francisco and thence to the world. By 1890
California ranked second in wheat production in the U.S.
In the 1870s farmers "back east" tended to remain in a
subsistence era, consuming much of what they grew and with
little cash for new machines. The Great Plains still had buffalo
and Indian Wars. But the big Far West, with its huge bonanza
farms, had the need and the money for new technology.
The combined harvester had been conceived and even built
as early as 1836. It didn't work well, but the basics were there.
Here in San Joaquin County, a number of farmers and
manufacturers rushed to fill the local need, all at about the
same time. In 1870, the machine didn't exist. Then William
Marvin built one that ran for nearly 20 years. Dave Young and
J.e. Hoult built their "Centennial" in 1876. Hoult was locally
regarded as the inventor of the combine. By 1890 the grain
grower had his choice of nearly a dozen machines, all built
locally. (See page 4).
It cannot be fairly said that the combined harvester was
invented in San Joaquin County, but there is little doubt that it
was perfected and made practical by local talent. We exported
the machine, along with its peculiar lore, to the rest of the grain
growing world. It is a forgotten San Joaquin County legacy.
The combined harvester brought about a revolution, " ... the
most important agricultural invention of the last 300 years,"
according to one historian. And it is as much a product of San
Joaquin County as the gang plow, Ben Holt's caterpillar tractor
or Bob LeTourneau's rubber tired scrapper.
011 The Cover ...
This photo of a 1923 model Harris Side Hill harvester at
work was selected as perhaps best illustrating the Harris
Harvester heritage. The side hill machines were a favorite of
George Harris and perhaps the best remembered of all Harris
combines
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
The Last Survivor ...
George Harris
and
The Harris Harvester
by
Judge William Biddick, Jr.
Introduction
Mention should be made at the outset of the
reason why one whose career was entirely in the legal
profession would be interested in George Harris and
the Harris Combined Grain Harvester.
George Harris was my uncle. His wife, Nellie, and
my mother, Bertha, were sisters. They were two of
nine children of James and
Elizabeth Tretheway (originally
spelled Trethewey) Jory. James was
a grain farmer in the Lockeford area
and both he and my grandmother
were born in Cornwall, England.
They came to California separately
in the 1860's and were married in
1870.
George Harris was born in
Cornwall in 1871 and came to
Stockton in 1890. He was
introduced to Nellie by Tretheway
relatives and they were married in
Lockeford in 1895.
Vernon and Floyd Mitchell, chief engineer at
Harris for twenty years, operated the Harris plant for
seven years after George's death under the name of
Harris and Mitchell.
Vernon had retained many records of the Harris
Company which operated under
several names, including the
original Harris Manufacturing
Company and later Harris
Machinery Company and Harris
Harvester Company.
These records, dating from the
early 1900's include sales brochures,
parts catalogues, operating
manuals, business correspondence,
photos, customer lists, letters, and
numerous other documents.
After Vernon died in 1973 and
.
Ruth In 1979, the records were left
to Vernyce Dee who had lived in
Orinda, California, for many years.
Vernyce Dee died early in 1994 and
her surviving husband Jack has
made available all of these records to me.
WALLAWAUA
Washington
My father, William Biddick, Sr.,
was also born in Cornwall and
came to Stockton via Canada in
1910. Nellie and Bertha were the only two sisters of a
family of nine children who married Cornishmen so
there was a very close bond between the two families.
George was like a second father to me and the
Harrises' only child, George Vernon Harris, like an
older brother. George died in 1934 when I was almost
fourteen.
Vernon, as he was called, married Ruth Hamman
1928 after his graduation from the College of the
Spring 1995
Pacific and they had one child, Vemyce Dee, who
married Jack Wickware in 1949.
There are two Harris Harvesters at the San Joaquin
County Historical Museum at Micke Grove, one
under cover and one outside, described later on in
more detail. Jack and I thought it would be of general
interest to those concerned with the agricultural
history of the area to organize the Harris materials
and prepare an account of an important chapter in the
history of agricultural machinery.
San Joaquin Historian
Page 3
George Harris at work in his office in 1918. This was his normal office attire, but his gnarled and calloused hands reveal he was a "hands-on" supervisor. Walking to Work
This was the era when the working man
expected to commute to work by walking. So too,
with owners, management and their families.
None of Harris family originally lived more than
four blocks from the plant.
James and Elizabeth Jory lived around the comer
on Flora between Pilgrim and Ophir. My
grandparents had moved into Stockton when my
grandfather retired from farming. My mother
lived with them until she married my father in
1917.
In the early days, George and Nellie lived at
837 N. Pilgrim Street, the southwest corner of
Pilgrim and Poplar across the street from the
Jewish Cemetery and in easy walking distance of
the factory. Nellie's parents, my grandparents,
In the early twenties George and Nellie moved
to 1345 N. Lincoln Street on the West side of town
where they both lived for the remainder of their
lives, George dying in 1934 and Nellie in 1962.
Page 4
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
Background
A brief background is necessary to understand the
development of the combined harvester and the state
of the industry when the young George Harris went
to work for Matteson and Williamson in Stockton in
the early 1890's. The word combine or combined
means that the machine performed the combined
functions of cutting, threshing, and cleaning.
Prior to 1876 all combines were made to order. In
that year Matteson and Williamson began to
manufacture a standard combine. Dr. E. W. Hilgard, a
University of California professor, referred to "a
wondrous and fearful combination of header,
thresher and sacking wagon moving in a procession
side-by-side through the doomed grain."
Don Carlos Matteson came to California overland
in 1850, went back to illinois, then returned overland
in 1852. He entered into a partnership with T. P.
Williamson in 1865. Dr. William CampbelL a retired
Stockton dentist, is the great-grandson of Don Carlos
Matteson. Interestingly enough. Dr. Campbell and his
wife Addie were good friends of Vernon and Ruth
Harris.
Matteson and Williamson purchased the block
bounded by Main, Market, Grant and Aurora in 1870
for $7,500. The factory was located on this block, and
four new buildings were added in 1883. In 1890, the
firm manufactured sixty harvesters.
Another combine placed on the market in 1876 was
built by Daniel Houser and David Young. In 1881
Houser fonned a partnership with George Haines and
began the manufacture of the famous Haines-Houser
combine. This pioneer firm was also located in
Stockton. There is a 1904 Haines-Houser in the Holt
Room of the Haggin Museum in Stockton.
Eventually Benjamin Holt purchased the rights of
Matteson and Williamson in 1895 as well as the
patents of Houser and Haines in 1901.
By 1890 the transition to combined harvesters was
taking place with great rapidity and by 1900, the
change was complete on the huge bonanza farms.
Although these giant farms were then in the process
of subdivision, still two-thirds of all wheat in the San
Joaquin Valley was being harvested by combines.
Pioneer Combined Harvester Inventors and Builders Builder
William Marvin
J.e. Hoult & David Young
Dan Houser
Herbert Benton
James Trethewey
Samuel Gaines
George Minges
Dr. Myers
David Young
D.E. Matteson
LUShippee
Daniel Best
Benjamin Holt
J.H Houser Geo. Haines
H.T. Preble & F.L Kincaid
Ingersoll & Tesch
George Harris
j
Model
Marvin Harvester
Centennial Harvester
Houser Harvester
Benton Harvester
Trethewey Harvester
Gaines Harvester
1-1inges Harvester
Myers Harvester
Young Harvester
Matteson & Williamson
Stkn Combined Harvester
& Agricultural Works
Daniel Best
Holt Harvester
Houser & Haines
Victor Harvester
Ingersoll & Tesch
Harris Harvester
Started
1869
1875
1882
1884
1884
1885
1884
1884
1885
1884
1884
1885
1885
1~
1892
1895
I'm
Comment
Discontinued 1872
Discontinued 18%
Sold toS.CH&A. Works, 1886
Discontinued 1885
Discontinued 1884
Discontinued 1888
Discontinued 1887
Discontinued 1885
Sold to Benicia Agr. Works in 1889
Sold to Holt 1&:6
Bumedin ISW?
Merged with Holt Mfg. Co.
Became Caterpillar, 1925
Sold to Holt 1<m
Sold to Holt I894
Sold to Holt 18977
Ooo:rl Stockton plant 1%6
Built in Fresno through 1%7
Source: TI~omas H. Luke - 1929
Spring 1995
San Joaquin Historian
Page 5
Early Years
By 1902 George Harris had become super­
intendent and manager of Matteson and Williamson,
by then owned by Holt, and in that same year started
his own firm. Charles Cullums, who was employed
by Holt, joined my Uncle George.
The business started as a small harvester repair
shop. The first few years were devoted to ~epairing
and rebuilding and to experimenting With a gas
engine assisted harvester that would withst~nd
extremely severe conditions. With the threshmg,
cleaning and separating machinery being indepen­
dently powered by the gas engine, it was po&<;ibie to
greatly reduce the number of horses required for pull­
ing the machine since they did not have to also pro­
vide traction power.
Early harvesters,
without the aux­
iliary engine, pro­
vided power for
the
cutting,
threshing and
cleaning oper­
ations by gearing
this machinery to
two of the turning
wheeJ.s-often
called the "bull
wheels./I Thus,
the horses had to
not only pull hard
enough to move
the combine, they
had to pull hard
enough to also operate all the attached machinery.
Early day harvesters with power transferred from the
wheels were called "ground powered." The
Haines-Houser in the Haggin Museum is
ground-powered.
The firm was incorporated in 1904 as the Harris
Manufacturing Company, originally located in a
small factory at Park and Ophir Streets in Stockton.
(Ophir is now Airport Way).
The original incorporators were George Harris and
Charles Cull urns, each with 23,040 shares of stock,
James Trethewey with 3,840 shares, and Nellie Harris
and Ada CulluffiS, each with 40 shares.
James Trethewey, a carpenter and a Cornishman,
was a first cousin of my grandmother, Elizabeth
Tretheway Jory. He was born in 1854 and died in 1<ni
when tlle firm was in its infancy. He had built a har­
vestor in 1884. The original patent for his 'Traveling
Harvester" was obtained by James Trethewey in 1904
Page 6
Early in 1912 plans were made for the building of a
new factory as the demand for gas harvesters was
increasing dramatically. The new plant was located on
Wilson Way, then called East Street, at Park. The
address in later years was 702 N. Wilson Way. It occu­
pied four and one-half acres with five buildings and a
combined floor area of 100,000 square feet. Railroad
spur tracks had been constructed into the plant and
over one hundred persons were employed.
In the first detailed sales brochure, printed in 1916,
the harvesters are referred to as gas harvesters; i.e. the
operation of the combined functions of the harvester,
as distinguished from the pulling of the harvester,
was powered by a gas engine. The placement of the
engine was a distinctive feature of the Harris design.
Two models were built at first, the Upland Gas Har­
vester and the
Lowland Gas
Harvester. The
lowland har­
vester was
intended for
heavier work,
had a larger
capacity and
more engine
power. The
upland model
had a 30 inch
cylinder, a
42-1/2 inch
separator, an
18 inch by 6
foot
main
wheel, and a 40 horsepower, 4 cylinder gas engine.
The lowland model had a 35 inch cylinder, a 48-1/ 2
inch separator, a 30 inch by 6 foot main wheel, and a
45 horsepower, 4 cylinder gas engine. (Harvesters will
be deSignated hereafter by cylinder and separator
widths in inches with the cylinder size being first as
30/42-1/435/48-1/2.)
The headers came in a variety of sizes and were
not generally used to designate a model. The cylind~r
performed the primary function of threshing the gram
while the separator was a complex series of opera­
tions to separate the grain from the chaff.
It was not specified in the sales material who man­
ufactured the gas engines, but, by 1918, Harris was
prodUCing its own gas engines. Earlier Ha~ris
machines had been powered by an Atlas Manne
engine.
The lowland harvester which operated in the Delta
had more power and also wider wheels for operation
in the softer ground.
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
UPLAND GAS HARVESTER
Regular 1\;1odel
PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS 30 Inch Cylinder
Main Wheel, 18 In. x 6 Ft.
42% Inch Separator
Front Wheel, 12 In. x 3 Ft.
44 Inch Draper
Horses Required, 14 to 18
20 Foot Cut
Capacity, 30 to 50 Acres Per Day
Gas Motor, 4 Cylinder, 40 Horse Power
Ansbro Bros.
FredKuckuk
Jones Bros.
J.E.Meyers
Von Glahn and Turner
Borden and Cantrell
Diando and Del Carlo
Geoljen and Rhodes
N.Koster
Gerlack Bros.
Hannah and Grimsley
J. S. & G. A Sanguinetti
According to the brochure, 'There is positively no
other combined harvester on the market that will
handle such a large volume at such a small cost for
running expenses and upkeep. It shows to the best
advantage under exceptionally severe conditions.
Where other makes fail and give up, the Harris Gas
Harvester goes serenely on and handles the most
difficult work"
The pictures in the pamphlet show the harvesters
being pulled by horses but the discussion of the
lowland harvester states that it can be easily pulled by
an average gas tractor.
The concluding page of the brochure is a partial
list of recent purchasers, fifty nine in number, with an
invitation to readers to contact them about their
experiences with Harris Harvesters. The addresses are
from throughout the Central Valley plus addresses in
Oregon and Idaho.
Escalon
Victoria Island
Roberts Island
Banta
Vernalis
Tracy
Stockton
Peters
Alex Salmon
Lathrop
E. C. & G. A Steinmetz
Fabian-GrunauerCo.
Giovacchini Bros.
Banta
Tracy
Stockton
A selected price list which was published with the
first brochure in 1916 lists prices as follows:
The following purchasers are listed from San
Joaquin County:
Spring 1995
Banta
Stockton
Neoon
Banta
San Joaquin Historian
3O/42-l/2"Standard
35/48-1/2"Standard
4O/54-l/2"Standard
$3,400
$3,850
$4,100
Page 7
Harris paid Holt a set amount for each Harris engine
produced, but there are no records or correspondence
to support this.
Harris was also manufacturing combined bean
harvesters, made in two sizes. A letter from G. A.
Turner of the Old River Farms headquartered in
Stockton on the letterhead of the California Bean
Growers Association states that, in 1918, Old River
Farms discontinued the use of all machines but the
Harris and that they used four of the same.
Another letter from River Farms Company of
California with offices in San Francisco, referring to
grain harvesters, advised that they had six Harris
Harve:.iers in use and were ordering five more.
The 1918 Harris Gas Motor-40-45 horesepower
A new brochure was printed in 1918 which
indicated that the business was thriving. The area of
the factory had now expanded to eleven acres, and
there were now in the neighborhood of two hundred
employees.
The 1918 publication again offers both upland and
lowland gas harvesters with the same dimensi~s an~
specifications as the 1916 models. Featu~ed In this
presentation is the Side Hill Harvester which was to
be a key machine in the Harris models for many
years. This model had only received passing mention
in the 1916 brochure. According to the description,
'The Harris Side Hill is built for extreme heavy work
and will operate on the most extreme hillsides and on
account of the even distribution of weight will stay to
the hill and cut a full cut at all times."
Harvesters are depicted being pulled by tractors
but also by horses. The number of horses or mules
required for pulling the lowland harvester was
specified as 14 to 18. Ground-powered harvesters
would be pulled by 30 or more. The distinctive
feature of the side-hill model was that the header, or
cutting machinery, could be elevated or depressed.
The wheels also adjusted so that the separator could
remain level.
The two centerfold pages of the publication
contain pictures of Harris Four Cy~de~ Gas E~gines.
Harris manufactured its own engmes In two SIZes at
this time, 4O-4S and 50-55 horsepower. Later, smaller
engines were also produced. The engine is described
as valve-in-head, with high carbon steel crank shafts,
chrome nickel valves, throttling governor, high
tension impulse starting magneto, force f~ oilers on
cylinders/large crank shaft, planetary fnctlOn ~utc.h
and two exhaust manifolds. The Harris gas engme IS
now an important component of the sales promotion.
Some of the old-timers say that the Harris gas
engine was very similar to the Holt. One said that
Page 8
The Twenties
By 1920, Charles Cullums was no longer associated
with Harris. George Harris remained a<; president and
F. H. Kennedy had become vice-president and
actively involved in management. Other direct~rs
were F. J. Viebrock, C. E. Williams, Edward F. Hams,
a banker but no relation to George, and attorney O. B.
Parkinson.
The firm had financial problems in 1921. Demand
exceeded production in 1920. Preparation for 1921
resulted in stockpiling of material not required in 1921
due to a business recession in agriculture. The crisis
was weathered with the issuance of bonds.
A new issue of sales brochures was printed in
1923. By this time a second plant for the assembly of
harvesters had been established at Walla Walla in
eastern Washington just north of the Oregon border.
The decision to establish a branch plant in Walla
Walla was armounced in October, 1919 with large
feature stories in two Walla Walla papers, the Union
and the Bulletin. The articles stated that Harris had
purchased an existing factory, the Gilbert Hunt plant
which had produced agricultural machinery,
including the Pride of W ashington Thresh~ng
Machine. It wa<; further armounced that the operatIon
would commence as an assembly plant.
By the end of 1920, the plant was ready to
commence operations with 90 harvesters to be
produced for the 1921 season. Progress reports
appeared over the next sever~l years in a l~cal
monthly magazine, Up-To-The- Tttne~. The operation
continued as an assembly plant With 30 to 40 men
being employed.
The 1923 offering of harvesters was five standard
machines and three side hill models. The largest
harvester manufactured was the 40-54-1/2, which
was the largest combine then manufactured. It :was
referred to as 'The Giant." This machine came with a
20 or 24 foot header.
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
A 1919 Harris Hemp Machine at work in San Joaquin County
The other standard harvesters were the 35-481/2,
the 30-42 1/2, the 24-36 1/2, and the 22-33 1/2. The
headers were in various sizes all the way down to 12
feet. All models were still equipped with Harris
engines with horsepower ratings from 50-55 down to
25-30.
The largest of the harvesters was designed for
work in the Delta. The 30-421/2 was the original
standard size.
Harris, as it expanded in the Northwest, found a
receptive market for the side hill combine. The first
side hill was a 26-361/2, but conditions dictated
smaller and lighter machines for side hill work. In
1923, a 24-36 1/2 model was manufactured with a
smaller engine. In 1923 an even smaller model was
featured, a 22-33 1/2. For the first time, the Harris
engine was replaced on this model with a Lycoming
Model C4. This was described as a very durable
engine, exceptionally well adapted for its purpose
and possessing a very considerable reserve of power.
The customer letters extolling the virtues of the
Harris Side Hill were for the most part from Oregon
and Washington.
A typical letter reads ao:; follows:
Spring 1995
All of my land is very steep and hilly, and from varied
experience with other haroesters will say the Harris stays to
the side hill cutting afull swath at all times and saving all
grain. It is far superior to any of the other makes of
machines.
In the 1928 sales brochure, the customer letters
again are mainly from Oregon and Washington and
from users of the 22-33 1/2 model. This model was
one used by farmers on relatively modest--sized farms
and would indicate that the huge corporate farms of
earlier years which used large numbers of large
standard harvesters were no longer as common.
Instructions for the care and operation of Harris
Harvesters issued during this period emphasize the
fact that the harvesters were made of wood.
Han-is Harvesters are made ofwood! The very highest
grade ofpine and fir make up the main frame and body. The
reason for this is obvious. On no other type of farm
machinery are there more jolts, jars, and strains to be
absorbed. These working conditions demand aresilient yet
light and strong construction. Nothing can compare with
clear, straight-grained wood for securing these qualities.
The best of wooo, Iwwever, will shrink andfor this reason it
is very important to keep the bolts and nuts tight.
San Joaquin Historian
Page 9
Troubled Times
nowheading into a deep depression, and the business
had financial difficulties although continuing to manu­
facture harvesters.
The business records and correspondence of the
Harris Company from 1928 and 1929, along with
Articles in the Stockton Record in 1933 indicate
newspaper clippings, indicate that the company was
the reduced activity at the Harris plant. Forty-three
having financial problems. Attempts were being made
harvesters were shipped in 1932, although normal pro­
to secure additional financing. In 1929, the stockhold­
duction was said to be 150. Seasonal operations were
ers, twenty-five in number, executed a Consent to
employing between 75 and 150 workers, but the
Transfer under which the Board of Directors could sell
off-season employment was only SO.
or transfer all of the business and assets of the Harris
Manufacturing Company, a California Corporation, to
One bright spot was the shipment of two carloads of
Harris Harvester Compa­
35-48-1/2 harvesters to Rus­
ny, a Nevada corpora­
sia in 1931. This model had a
tion, for a consideration
gross weight of 15 tons and
consisting of preferred
was the largest harvester
and common stock in One bright spot 1mS the shipment of two carloads of manufactured in the world at
the Nevada corporation.
that time.
35-48-1t2 harvesters to Russia in 1931. This model
The principal stockhold­
The days when the
ers of Harris Manufac­
had agross weight of15 tons and 1mS the largest
Central Valley was a sea of
turing at that time were
grain from one end to the
George Harris and G. J.
harvester manufoctured in the rrorld at that time.
other were long past. And the
Hollenbeck.
days of the huge grain farms
News stories in the
with a demand for fleets of
Stockton Record in 1928
harvesters were also gone.
and 1929 state that Edward F. Harris, former president
During these difficult days one of the chief financial
of the Commercial and Savings Bank in Stockton and a
officers of the company embezzled a large sum of
longtime Harris director, had taken over the manage­
money from the company and was charged and con­
ment of the company.
victed. The prosecution was handled by District Attor­
In 1929 Edward Harris, identified in a news story
ney Guard Darrah, father of retired Superior Court
as president and general manager of Harris Manufac­
Judge James Darrah and father-in-law of Stockton
turing, announced production of a new tractor and a
Mayor Joan Darrah.
motor--driven railroad hand-car. This production
At about this time, my uncle was diagnosed as hav­
was designed to keep the plant busy in the off-season
ing cancer. These were the early days of radiation and
when the harvester production was down. There is no
the results of treatment were very severe. We visited
further mention of any production of the new lines
him at Stanford Lane Hospital in San Francisco and in
although Harris tractors were again manufactured
his home on Lincoln Street.
after World War II. (The San Joaquin County Museum
This was a very sad time in the family as it became
collection includes a rare Harris four wheel drive
obvious that the condition was terminal. He died on
"Power Horse" tractor, currently being restored).
Easter Sunday, April 1, 1934, at the age of 63. He was
I do know that my uncle continued to be active in
buried in the Jory family plot in the Pioneer Harmony
the operation of the plant. But the country was
Grove Cemetery on Locke Road near Lockeford.
c. 1934 Side Hill Model with bulk grain handling equpment
Page 10 San Joaquin Historian
"
Spring 1995
The Patents
George Harris had no special training in
engineering. He had a standard elementary school
education in England and an apprenticeship in
carpentry, but the rest of his knowledge and expertise
came on the job. This was not at all unusual in those
days and was the common pattern for most of the
pioneer manufacturers of agricultural machinery.
He had many patents in his field which
demonstrates the breadth of his interests and his
innovative talents.
Jack Wickware, the surviving husband of George
Harris's granddaughter, has obtained copies of many
of these patents. These were utilized in a paper
prepared by Jeffrey Wickware, the ten year old great
great grandson of George Harris, for a school project.
The basic harvester patent as noted before was
obtained in 1904 by James Trethewey and assigned to
The Harris Manufacturing Company.
James Trethewey himself produced one harvester
in 1884. This was built by Joseph Martyn, also a
Cornishman and a carpenter. He was the grandfather
of Ed Hannay, former Stockton City Councilman, and
Jessie Hannay, a retired teacher living in Sacramento.
A part of the Specification which is included
within the Letters Patent for the harvester reads as
follows:
My invention relates to improvements in harvesting
machinery of that class which is designed to cut, thresh,
and clean grain during the travel of the machine over the
field.
My invention consists in the combination of parts
including a gasoline-engine by which the cutting,
tllreshing and cleaning mechanism are driven while the
mac1tine is hauled over the ground by separate and
independent power, and in details of construction which
will be more fully explained by reference to the
accompanying drawings.
In the operation of machines of the class herein
described it is common to haul such machines over the field
either by large teams of horses or by traction-engines, and
the power to drive the sickle, the transporting belt or
draper, and ti,e threshing and cleaning mechanism is
generally derived from the main bearing wheels, which
depend on their traction moving over the ground to provide
such power. In some cases steam-engines have been
mounted upon one side or upon the f0111Jard end of the
harvester and so disposed as to do a portion of the work; but
it has been necessary to mount the engine upon such
portion of the machine as to make an objectionable weight
and strain upon the machine.
It is the object of my invention to apply the power of a
plurality of internal-combustion engines which are
Spring 1995
centrally located and with such relation to the main
bearing-wheels as to assist in counterbalancing the weight
of the machine, and by means of supporting-girders
extending across the machine, the engine is centrally
located approximately above the threshing-cylinder and in
position to transmit its power to best advantage to all parts
which are to be driven by the engine.
In the same year, 1904, James Trethewey secured a
second patent for a bean thresher and a one half
interest in this patent was aSSigned to George Harris,
as an individual.
Patents issued to George Harris were an Elastic
Power Transmission Device in 1905, a series of five
patents relating to headers in 1925 and 1926, a patent
for a driving mechanism for harvesters in 1927, and
one for a cargo net in 1934.
Transition Years
From 1935, following George Harris's death, until
1941, the company was run by Floyd Mitchell, who
had been the Harris chief engineer for nearly twenty
years, and by Vernon Harris.
Mitchell had acquired a one-third interest in the
company before my uncle's death. My Aunt Nellie
received my uncle's two-thirds in the distribution of
his estate. She sold one-half of her interest to Vernon
and the other one-half to Mitchell.
The new sales brochure follows the format of
earlier years, but the name of the company is now The
Harris Machinery Company rather than Harris
Manufacturing. The logo is the familiar triangle
superimposed on the world globe, but the name on
the logo is Harris Harvester rather than Harris
Manufacturing.
Two models are described-both 26/38
machines-one standard, the other side hill, with
headers of varying sizes from 16 to 20 feet. The
engines in both are Waukesha, 6 cylinder engines,
with a 48 horsepower rating.
In February of 1941, a news story in the Stockton
Record stated that Vernon Harris and Floyd Mitchell
had sold their interests in the company. According to
the story, the operation of the plant for the first three
years after George Harris's death was devoted almost
entirely to the manufacture of parts for Harris
Harvesters. The firm had, however, built 142
harvesters in the three years preceding the sale. The
Harris Company was, in 1941, the only manufacturer
of combines in the West. The story further states that
it was for many years the largest exclusive
manufacturer of combines in the world, a claim which
is also made in sales publications over the years.
San Joaquin Historian
Page 11
The Watson Years-World War II
In the late 308 and on into the W orld War II years,
Harris promoted and produced a much praised flax
harvester called "Cal Flax." The inventor was Waldo
W. Weath of the University of California. Chief
engineer was E. J. Remple. The distinguishing feature
of the harvester was the use of rubber rollers.
Agricultural writer Hal Higgins described the
machine as doing "the most perfect job." In 1941, the
company manufactured 50 Cal Flax Harvesters.
The president and general manager of the reorgan­
ized firm was Dean D. Watson, a past president of the
California Real Estate Association and a man with
extensive farming interests in the Brentwood area.
Other officers were Paul Yancey, vice-president and
treasurer, Eugene D. Wilkinson, vice-president, attor­
ney Stephen Dietrich, F. B. Wray of Davis and Harry
Craviotto of Berkeley. Wilkinson was a prominent
grain buyer who operated under the name of E. D.
Wilkinson Grain Co. and also as a partner in Wilkin­
son and Schuler. Dietrich was a member of the firm of
Rutherford, Jacobs, Cavalero and Dietrich.
During World War II, the reorganized company
converted the major part of its facilities to the produc­
tion of military equipment such as wooden cargo truck
bodies, wood and steel trailers, combat vehicles, ship
sections for later assembly and the rebuilding of jeeps.
During the war years it did not engage in the full scale
production of harvesters as in the 1920s when it pro­
duced two hundred harvesters a year, 80 percent of
which were sold before being built.
I have had the opportunity of interviewing two
men who were with Harris during the World War II
and postwar period. Fred Nessler of Stockton was
with the company from 1942 to 1948. His father had
also worked at the plant. He became General Foreman
before leaving to go to the Supermold Company in
Lodi.
He recalls that in addition to war contracts, Harris
had contracts with Sears to produce substantial quanti­
ties of hay rakes, trailers, and camper trailers.
The plant continued to operate in Stockton up to
1956 and continued to manufacture harvesters, switch­
ing to steel construction and self-propelled machines.
Self-propelled machines are referred to as "pushers" to
distinguish them from older "pull-type" machines.
Harris also manufactured the Power Horse Tractor
during this period.
During most of this period Dean Watson was presi­
dent with J. W. Bauman as vice-president and plant
manager. Cliff Burroughs was in charge of research
and development on harvesters.
In 1952, there was a change in top management
with E. D. Wilkinson becoming president and G. P.
Sanguinetti, vice-president and general manager.
Lenard Daetwiler of Lodi went to work for Harris in
1945 and stayed until 1953, eventually becoming shop
foreman
Both men recall substantial production of the
self-propelled Harris Harvester. Daetwiler recalls the
production of over 100 harvesters in one year.
Both are of the opinion that over-cornrnitrnent to
production for Sears and lack of success with the
Power Horse Tractor contributed to the ultimate
closure of the plant in Stockton.
Also, in the 20s and 308, the dominance in agricul­
tural machinery and manufacturing had shifted to the
Mid-West. Holt had established its first plant in Peoria
in 1909, the first large Western manufacturer to move
East.
The development of water resources in California
also changed the pattern of farming in the state from
large holdings and dry-farming, to smaller farms and
more intensive cultivation.
,pam·
Photo of Harris employees in 1915. George Harris is in second row, third from right
Page 12
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
The Gates Close
Harris sold off its agricultural
manufacturing equipment in 1956.
At the time of the auction, the
Stockton Record ran an editorial
which serves as an epitaph to the
manufacture of the combined har­
vester in Stockton.
Through information furnished
by Robert Disch, of Lockeford, I
was able to contact the successors
to the Harris interests and trace
the later activities of the company.
After the closing down of the
Harris factory in Stockton in 1956,
the manufacturing and patent
rights to Harris Harvesters were
sold to Harvester Implements,
Inc., a division of Wilkerson and
Nutwell owned by Gus Wilkerson
and located at 190 Santa Fe A ve­
nue in Fresno. Production con­
tinued in Fresno of the self
-propelled harvester developed in
Stockton
Disch, a third generation grain
farmer on his ranch, has a Harris
self-propelled harvester made at
the Fresno plant. It is a 24/42
powered by a Hercules 100 HP.
engine. It was acquired by him,
used, in 1966.
In 1964, B. C. Mathews of the
M-C firm of Crystal Lake, lllinois
purchased the Harris rights from
Harvester Implements and con­
tinued manufacturing harvesters
through 1967 in Fresno.
I have been able to obtain a
Harris Operation and Main­
tenance Manual prepared by Har­
vester Implements in 1958 and a
sales brochure prepared by Harris
Harvester Co. in 1967 after
Mathews acquired the company.
The last model produced was
known as the 908 and was a self
propelled hillside machine with a
30" cylinder and a 42-1/2" separa­
tor powered by aIlS H.P. Her­
cules engine. The 908 was the lar­
gest Harris made at the Fresno fac­
tory.
The harvesters were operated
Spring 1995
by one person and the header was
in the front rather than on the
side. Grain was harvested in bulk
and transferred directly to an
accompanying grain truck.
End OfAgricultural Pioneer
No history ofgrain fanning in the
West could be written without refer­
ence to the Harris Manufacturing
Company. In one sense it was the suc­
cessor to the plant in which the first
combined reaper and thresher was
built in the West, and perhaps in the
nation, for the founder, George Har­
ris, was a superintendent ofthe origi­
nal enterprise.
The impending auction of the Har­
ris property on Wilson Way recalls
the factory'S long association with
western agriculture. Throughout this
region its harvesting machinery and
that of another Stockton company,
Holt, was the standard of comparison.
To a large degree, the farming devel­
opmen t of California was made pC6Si­
ble by the machines invented and
manufactured here.
It may be said, in fact, that Harris
and Holt pointed the way to the kind
of industrial economy for which
Stockton later would become noted.
This city continues to be a center for
the manufacture offarm equipment,
and for the fabrication and processing
necessary to serve farmers in Califor­
mao
One theory concerning the busi­
ness reverses which make the auction
necessary is that the Harris company
overexpanded to meet the demands
placed on it by the war effort. If this
be true, it is an ironic ending for an
establishment whose start and long
period success was founded on the
peacetime need forfood and fodder.
Stockton Record May 12, 1956
In 1978, Farm and Home Sup­
ply, Inc. of Pomeroy, Washington,
owned by Ferd Herres, purchased
the Harris rights from Mathews
and continues to supply spare
parts for the late model Harrises.
San Joaquin Historian
Manufacturing of harvesters was
never resumed. (Pomeroy is in
Eastern Washington, about 65
miles north of Walla Walla).
Mr. Herres has provided me
with an invoice of the last Harris
Harvester that he sold, a Hillside
908. The date of sale was July 20,
1970, although the harvester was
manufactured in 1%7. The price
was $21,672.00, including sales tax,
and the purchaser was Houser &
Son, Inc., of Clarkston, Washing­
ton.
The property and plant of the
Harris Company in Stockton was
purchased in 1961 by Wilson Way
Warehouse from the Bank of Amer­
ica which had previously repos­
sessed the property in 1959 after
the cessation of manufacturing in
Stockton. All of the machinery and
contents of the buildings had pre­
viously been sold-off. Dr. Joseph
Barkett of Stockton was the spokes­
man for Wilson Way Warehouse.
For over twenty years, the premises
were operated as a storage facility.
However, the age and condition of
the buildings constituted a safety
hazard and the buildings were lev­
eled and the site cleared in 1981.
In 1989-90, the first portions of
the Eastland Plaza Shopping Cen­
ter were constructed on the premis­
es. Later additional adjoining prop­
erty was acquired and the expan­
sion of the Center has continued up
to the present.
The Harris Company, under
several names, operated with either
George Harris or Vernon Harris
and Floyd Mitchell from 1902 to
1941, a total of thirty-nine years.
The heyday of the company in the
manufacture of combined har­
vesters was from 1912, when the
expanded plant was built, until
1934, a total of twenty-two years.
However, harvesters were still pro­
duced through 1967, so that Harris
Harvesters were manufactured for
a total of sixty-five years, fifty-four
of those being in Stockton.
Page 13
The Harris Legacy
eliminating the need for sacks.
There are two Harris Harvesters at the Micke
Grove Museum. The one under cover is painted the
traditional Harris red. It was manufactured in 1919
and its serial number is 959. Many of the harvesters
have serial numbers, but I have been unable to locate
a master list of numbers. It is a 26-36 1/2" sidehill
model. Miss Grace I. Nelson of Roberts Island
donated it to the Museum in 1974. It was used on the
Nelson ranch and pulled by a Caterpillar Tractor
which also belongs to the museum. The harvester had
a header which made a 20 foot cut and was powered
by a 40-45 H.P. Harris Engine, number 735.
Harvester crews were professional and followed
the harvest starting at Tulare Lake in early May,
moving up the Central Valley and on to Oregon and
Washington through the summer.
The larger of the two harvesters is outside and has
been repainted green. It is a 35-48-1/2 standard
model powered by a Harris 50-55 H.P. engine. The
harvester was purchased in 1919 and was donated by
Jacob Sandoval and Robert Gruwell in memory of the
Gruwell Family of Farmington.
One of the early and operable Harris Harvesters
still in existence is owned by Clifford (Cliff) Koster of
Tracy. It was purchased by his grandfather Nicolaus
Koster in 1914. It is a standard machine and is the
largest harvester manufactured by Harris, a 40-541/2
with a 24 foot header, known as 'The Giant." This
1914 harvester was powered by a 50 H.P. Atlas
Marine engine manufactured in San Francisco. Later
models of the same size had Harris 55 HP. valve in
head engines.
This harvester operated regularly from 1914 to
1958. From 1947 to 1958 Cliff Koster was the separator
man or boss on the harvester. He still lives on the
family farm and has operated the harvester in a
demonstration project every other year in the even
years since 1972 as a part of the biennial meeting of
the Early Day Gas Engine/Tractor Association at the
Koster Ranch. It is pulled by a Holt 75 "Caterpillar"
manufactured in 1922 or 23. Cliff was preceded on the
farm by his grandfather and his father William
Koster.
Cliff has handwritten a fascinating memo on the
history and operation of the Harris Combined
Harvester which I have used in preparing this portion
of my artide.
The crew on this "big red" consisted of the
separator man or boss, header tender, tractor operator
(cat skinner) and three sack sewers or two sewers and
a "jig." The sack jigger hung the sacks and "jigged"
them to get the maximum amount of grain in the sack
and then took the sack to the sewer. There were also
two sack 'bucks" on a truck or wagon to pick up the
sacks and take them to the pile. In 1942 the 1914
Koster harvester was modified for bulk harvesting
Page 14
The owner bunked the men in the bunk house and
the owner's wife was full-time and then some,
feeding six to eight men three times a day.
The Kosters liked to average 1200-1300 sacks a
day. They did cut as many as 1500 but ordinarily
didn't like to crowd or overwork a machine. There
were 2.25 bushels of grain in a standard sack, with a
sack of barley weighing around 105 pounds. and
wheat around 135 pounds.
Certain characterizations of the Harris machines
are shared by the old-timers. The harvester was
designed so that each succeeding function had more
capacity than the previous function. Once the grain
got through the cylinder, the rest of the machine took
care of the material. According to Cliff, 'The Holt
could 'hog' in a little more grain. but the Harris did a
better job of saving the grain." The authors of The
Grain Harvesters, Graeme R. Quick and Wesley F.
Buchele, characterize the Harris grain separation
system as "designed to steadily increase crop flow by
maintaining each processing element at a slightly
higher speed than the previous one."
The Harris Harvesters during George Harris's days
were made of wood. The preVailing opinion among
farmers was that George Harris personally selected
his wood, buying only "ltl clear, straight grain with
no knots."
The operators of the wooden harvesters tended to
look down on the "tin rigs" which were smaller,
noisier, and not nearly as smooth in operation
The Harris was known as a machine that was
made by craftsmen who cared about their work and
its performance was COnsistently rated as superior.
Some of the language from the 1916 Harris
brochure illustrates the concern with quality.
They are substantially built ofthe best materials.... All
woodwork is put together with mortises, tenons and draw
pins and every joint goes together with paint. All siding is
painted before being put together and screws are used
instead of nails .... All shaft bearings are in perfect
alignment, as we take particular pains to babbitt all
bearings after the shafts are set in the machine.... The frame
is exceptionally rigid and strong .... All joints are well
braced and reinforced.... In fact it is practically impossible
to spring or warp aHarris Frame. "
One problem noted by Cliff and others was the
performance of the original barrel radiator which did
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
not cool the engine adequately and which leaked. A
common practice was to install a Best 75 tractor
radiator as a replacement.
harvester is being pulled by 33 full-,size fiberglass
mules. Normally, though, a gas powered harvester
would not require this number of mules.
It is hard to do justice in this article to many of the
observations that Cliff has made on the practical
operation of the Harris Giant, such as the problem of
keeping the header just far enough from the ground
to avoid taking in rocks and damaging the cylinder,
or lifting the header properly on a tum to permit the
header axle to move in a slot and avoid pushing the
header wheel Sideways and perhaps breaking the
header.
For many years Harris and Holt were fierce
competitors, although Holt manufactured the world
renowned Holt "Caterpillar" Tractor as well as the
combine. In 1925, Holt consolidated with the Best
Manufacturing Company of San Leandro, California,
and the tractor plant was moved to Peoria, I1Iinois.
The consolidated firm, known as the Western
Harvester Company, continued to manufacture
harvesters in Stockton until 1930 at which time the
plant was closed. The harvester rights of Western
Harvester had been purchased by John Deere in 1935.
After 1930 Harris was the only manufacturer of
combined harvesters in the West. For one reason or
another more Harris Harvesters seem to have
survived in this area than Holt.
Another old model Harris which is in storage and
could probably be operated is on the Disch ranch in
Lockeford. It is a 24-36 1/2 manufactured in 1925 and
acquired by the Disch family in 1928. It has a Harris
25-30 H.P. engine and makes an 18' cut. It was used
regularly until 1966 and was operated for a special
demonstration in 1975 when it harvested 80 acres of
grain.
There is a 1919 Harris Side Hill, a 26-36 1/2 model
in the Fort Walla Walla Museum in Walla Walla,
Washington where Harris operated its assembly plant
for many years. A comment from Virgil BenningtoI\
an ex-salesman for Harris, is that none of these
machines were sold in the Walla Walla area, as they
were too large. About 15 of these machines were sold
in the Pendleton-Wasco areas.
The harvester was owned by Cy Curl of Adams,
Oregon and purcha'>ed by his father.
The really unique feature of the exhibit is that the
The manufacturers in Stockton were
unquestionably the pre--eminent leaders in the
development and manufacture of the combine in this
part of the country.
Ninety percent of combines are now manufactured
in the Midwest by the Big Four: John Deere,
Massey-Ferguson, Case (successor to International
Harvester Company), and Allis-Chalmers.
Our rich local heritage is fortunately being kept
alive by area museums and by dedicated volunteers
who help to preserve machines and material for the
generations who might otherwise be unaware of this
great history.
The Harris Bean Harvester, c. 1918.
Harris also designed and built special
harvesters for flax and hemp.
Spring 1995
San Joaquin Historian
Page 15
Personal and Family Recollections
George came to California with his brother John
Trethewey Harris who was a year and half older than
George, but John returned to Cornwall after two years
and lived there the rest of his life. The two brothers
corresponded regularly until George's death and most
of John's letters have been preserved. George
returned to Cornwall just once, in 1901, when he and
Nellie spent three months traveling and visiting
relatives.
Cornwall is the westernmost County in England, a
part of what is known as the West Country. It is
separated from the rest of England by the River
Tamar. Until the current century, it was fairly remote
from the rest of England. Its people are of Celtic
origin, like the Irish, Welsh, and Bretons and had their
own language as late as the eighteenth century.
Until the middle of the nineteenth century,
Cornwall's economy was based largely on mining tin,
copper, and china clay. But the mines played out and
there was a large migration of the Cornish for
economic reasons with many going to mining areas in
California, Colorado, Michigan, Wisconsin, and
PennsylVania.
I recall that my uncle along with my Aunt Nellie
would drive up to Walla Walla in their Buick. As I
grew older I was in charge of watering the lawn at
their lincoln Street home, just a few blocks from ours,
when they were on trips. These were the days before
automatic sprinklers and the regular use of airplane
travel.
Nearby on Ophir lived another sister of Nellie's,
Edna Beckman, whose husband was a key salesman
for the Harris Company. James Trethewey lived on
Park between Ophir and Pilgrim. Various other
Tretheway relatives lived nearby. When Vernon
Harris graduated from the College of the Pacific in
1927 and married Ruth, they also established their
first home in the same neighborhood on Ophir.
of Trustees of the College of the Pacific and served as
vice-president of the Board. In those days, the ties of
the College to the Methodist Church were very strong.
Tully Knoles, president of the College of the Pacific
was an ordained Methodist minister and very active
at Central.
My uncle was appointed to the first Stockton City
Planning Commission in 1918 by Mayor Alex
Oullahan. He was also on the Board of Directors of
Stockton Morris Plan from its inception in 1917 until
his death.
A Ralph Yardley Stockton Record cartoon in his
''Do You Remember" Series show George Harris in
earlier days parking his car in downtown Stockton
with this caption, "On a Sunday George Harris would
park his Knox car two blocks away from his Church.
It would look too sporty to be seen riding up to the
Church in an automobile."
One vivid memory I have is riding in my uncle's
Hudson touring car with drop-seats with various
family members en route to Pacific Grove with my
uncle singing hymns, sometimes slightly off-key.
When the San Joaquin County Fair was held at its
old site along Charter Way, an agricultural machinery
display area was located at the first turn of the
racetrack. For several years, a Harris Harvester was
located in the area in such a way that family members
could sit on top of the harvester and watch the races,
much more exciting than watching from the
grandstand.
In one of the Harris sales publications of the late
twenties was a letter from my uncle which I'm sure he
must have written himself. He was certain that he
built the best grain harvester in the business and the
letter accurately conveys his direct and confident
attitude.
I have pleasant memories of my uncle. As the only
youngster in the two families in the 20's and 30's I was
always included in automobile trips and picnics and
there were, of course, many family get-togethers in a
very large extended family.
George Harris was a good-sized and fine-looking
man, very outgoing and friendly.
Like many Cornishmen, he had close ties to the
Methodist Church and was a longtime member of the
Central Methodist Episcopal Church, then at the
comer of Miner A venue and San Joaquin where the
Bank of Stockton is now located. He was for many
years the Superintendent of the Sunday School and a
good friend of B. C. Wallace, the funeral director, who
was also a pillar of the Church. He was on the Board
Page 16
Vemon Harris, Author Bill Biddick, and George Harris pose
for the Brownie at family event in 1926.
San Joaquin Historian
Spring 1995
A Letter From Mr. Harris
You are probably figuring on buying a
Combined Harvester some time or another.
You want a machine that will harvest your
grain---save it all-for you. That machine must
make good from the start-and keep on making
good-year after year.
You want a combined harvester that is
backed by a factory that gives REAL
SERVICE-because you know that delays are
costly-sometimes disastrous.
I want to say tl1is to you. Into every Harris
Combined Harvester is built the best design
and construction that my twenty-five years in
the Combined Harvester business have taught
me.
The material and workmanship-all the way
through-are the very best available- money
can't buy better. These are reasons why you will
get years of active service frof!t every Harris
Harvester. And reasons why, with ordinary
care, a Harris Harvester will last you a lifetime.
From motor to draper, I KNOW the Harris
Combined Harvester is right. I can recommend
ittoyou.
As for service-that is the keystone on
which the Harris ManufactUring Company has
built its success.
You can get Harris parts when you need
them-quickly, and at a reasonable price.
Harris Harvesters are not assembled
harvesters. They are built COMPLETE right in this
factory. Designing, patternmaking, blacksmithing,
woodwork, canvas, and leather work--all is done
here in this factory.
I learned in the good school of experience. I
have driven harvesters, repaired them, designed
them, built them I KNOW what a combined
harvester should be.
And I, personally, see that every Harris
Combined Harvester is built just as though J were
to use that machine myself-and just as though
that machine HAD to last a lifetime.
I will be glad to have you write me or any of
our distributors for more information regarding
the Harris Combined Harvester..
Every model is husky-powerful-effident
and BUILT TO LAST. You can bank on Harris
performance.
Decide now to write for a catalog-that when
you buy a harvester it will be a Harris.
0· d{. d{a.'l!ds
Cliff Koster demonstrates his 1914 Harris "Giant" at his Westside ranch in 1986. It is being pulled by a
1922 or 1923 Holt 75 tractor. This unit worked every season from 1914 through 1958.
Spring 1995
San Joaquin Historian
Page 17
En d of the line ...
A fleet of eight Harris 908 combines harvesting wheat in the Pacific Northwest in 1%7-the last of their kind.
In Retrospect
Why did Harris survive although it was the last
manufacturer of combines to enter the California
market?
One easy answer is that it commenced business
with only one competitor-Holt-which had bought
all of the other competitors and that Holt then
concentrated on its phenomenally successful
"Caterpillar" tractor and eventually moved to the
Midwest where the real action was.
But yet Harris developed a loyal following and
was still producing harvesters thirty-seven years after
Holt moved all of its production facilities to Peoria,
Illinois.
There is little doubt that Harris consistently made
quality harvesters. They were built substantially and
of the best material. George Harris was a hands-on
Page 18
manufacturer. He was directly involved in the design
and manufacturing process.
In addition, parts and service were readily
available and were reliable. Cliff Koster's 1914
"Giant" is still operative over eighty years after it was
purchased. There are scores of the old Harris's still
around.
The other distinctive feature of the Harris was the
efficiency of the operation. It was known as a
harvester that "saved grain."
In light of the change in emphasis in California
agriculture and the transfer of agricultural machinery
production to the Midwest, the wonder is that the
company survived as long as it did.
San Joaquin Historian
William Biddick, Jr.
Spring 1995
Sources
State Archives
Books
Wallace Smith,. Garden if the Sun, M. Hardison,. Fresno,
California, copyright September 1939, 4th edition
copyright September 1950
Graeme R Quick and Wesley F. Buchele, The Grain Har­
vesters, American Society of Agricultural Engineers 1978
Holt-Atherton Pacific Center for Western Studies, Benjamin
Holt, University of thePacific 1982
Special Papers
Leslie Crow and Clifford W. Koster, TheHistmy if Grain
Fanning aflll Development 0{ L£dxJr-Saving A.gricultural
MachinenJ in San Jooquin County.
Gifford W. Koster, TIle Operation if the Harris Combined
Office of the Secretary of State, Sacranlento, California
Harris Manufocturmg Co.
People Interviewed
CfiffKoster
1...0 n,''''...;....... ~;~~
Robert Disch Lenard Daetwiler Fred Nessler Walter Jay
Hart Wilson JdmHammer Dr. J~ Barkett Ruth Hartley FerdHerres Dr. William Campbell Tracy,CA
DaVlS/CA
Lockeford, CA
Lockeford, CA
I.odi CA
Stock.too, CA
Stocktoo, CA
Stocktrn, CA
Stocktoo, CA
Stocktoo, CA
Walla Walla, WA
Pcm.eray, WA
Stocktcil, CA
Harvester 19)4
Notes and letters from Ruth Hartley, Registrar, Fort Walla
Walla MW*ruffi
The Author
Thomas Luke, sales manager, Holt Co., History if the Holt
Hwvester, 1929
George Hanis Collection
1.
2
3.
4
5.
6. The Harris Mfg. Co. - Gas Harvesters
The Harris Mfg. Co. - Ga'i Harvesters
Harris SidehilJ Combined Harvester
How Will You Harvest
It's a Harris One Standard for Quality-Two Standard
Sizes for Service
7. Harris 22/33-1/2" Sidehill Combined Harvester
8. Harris 26/38" Standard and Sidehill Combined
Harvesters
9. Harris Combined Harvesters Ferd Herres Files
1. Ope.ration and Maintenance Manual Harris
Self-Propelled Harvesters
2 Harris Hillside Combine
Newspaper Articles
Stocktoll Reconl
Stocktoll Record
StocktOIi Record
Stocktoll Reconl
Stockton Record
1916
1919
1922
1922
1923
1923
1925
1935
1937
1%8
1%7
May 12/1928
February :.!l, 1929
February 22, 1941
May 12/ 1%6
Mai:ch 25/ 1981
Hal Higgins Collection,. Dep't of Special Collections
UniveISity of California Library, Davis, CA Magazine Articles PaCIfIC Rural Press
Imp1ement Record
Califomia-Magazine if Ole Pacific
Impiernent Record
Implement Reconl
Califomia Cultiootor
February 1937 May 1937 September 1939 March 1941 December 1941 July 1943 Penrose Memorial Library, Whibnan College,
Walla Walla, WA, Lawrence L. Dodd, Archivist
Newspaper and Magazine articles
Walla Walla Bulletin
October 16, 1919
Walla Walla Union
October 17, 1919
Up-To-TIle-~Times A1agazitle (local monthly)
November 1919 to March 1926
Spring 1995
Author Bill Biddick, Jr. is a modest man. He has
submitted a very sparse biography, but then most of
us readily recognize Bill because of his lifetime of
public service.
He is a native Stocktonian--of course. He received
his B.A. from College of the Pacific in 1941. He
entered the u.s. Navy in 1942 and served past the end
of v..rw II to 1946.
After the war he completed his law studies and
received his LLB from Stanford Law School in 1947.
From 1952 through 1956 Bill was City Attorney for
Stockton, leaving that position when he was elected to
the State Assembly in 1957.
He served in Sacramento from 1957 through 1%0
before returning to Stockton after he was elected
Superior Court Judge. He served on the bench until
his retirement in 1980.
Judge Biddick and his wife, Dorothy, reside in
Stockton and both are members of the San Joaquin
Cm.ll1ty Historical Society.
San Joaquin Historian Page 19
This issue ofthe San Joaquitt Historian is spottsored by Jack D. Wickware itt memory of Vernyce Dee Harris Wickware attd itt tribute to George H. Harris and the contribution ofthe Harris Harvester to Stockton, San Joaquin County and America's grain growers. Address Correction Requested
San Joaquin County Historical
Society and Museum
P.O. Box 30
Lodi CA 95241-0030
Non-Profit Organization POSTAGE PAID Pennit No. 48 Lodi CA 95241