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Jethro Wood
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Jethro Wood
Jethro Wood (March 16, 1774 – 1834) was the inventor of a cast-iron moldboard plow with replaceable parts, the first commercially successful iron moldboard plow. His invention accelerated the development of American agriculture in the antebellum period. By simplifying and strengthening the plow design and adding interchangeable parts, Wood's plow broadened accessibility and eased replacements of plows in 19th century America. Wood was also responsible for notable changes in early American patent laws following patent infringements on his plow design.
Jethro Wood was born on March 16, 1774 in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. His parents were John Wood and Dinah Hussey. His family was Quaker, both of his parents being a part of the Society of Friends, and Wood remained Quaker throughout his life, but was not particularly doctrinaire. He was born as the only son alongside five or six sisters. His family was from relative wealth, his father being an early settler to the area and having established himself as one of the community's leaders, he was afforded a generous education accompanied with a library and workshop with which to feed his passion.
According to one account of Wood's childhood:
Once, while still very young, he had shaped a small plow out of metal, not dissimilar to the model which was later to form the basis for modern agriculture. But not satisfied with the mere making of it, and wishing to see it in operation, he fashioned a harness of corresponding size and fastened the family cat to his plow. The protests of the cat attracted the immediate attention of paternal authority, and the future inventor was soundly thrashed for his precocity.
It was in his youth when Wood would first begin his correspondence with Thomas Jefferson regarding their innovations, designs, and progress in new plows. Upon his father's death, Wood inherited a small fortune with which he would pursue his inventions and patents.
Wood spent his adult life in Cayuga County, New York, near Scipio. On January 1, 1793, Wood married Sylvia Howland of White Creek, New York; they had six children together. Following the lead of his parents, Wood would join the Society of Friends, becoming a consistent member.
Wood received a patent on an initial version of a cast-iron moldboard plow in 1814, which improved upon previous designs by utilizing interchangeable parts that allowed for convenient repairs and connected the parts without the use of screws or bolts. It was designed as three separate parts, share, moldboard, and landside that could be replaced individually. In 1815, Wood contacted Moses Brown, an Early American Industrialist, to assist in promoting the plow in Rhode Island. He then sent the plow on to Thomas Jefferson in 1816, who praised the design. Later on, in 1819, he patented a second plow which more closely matched his ambitions for the project. The 1819 patent was the 19th patent issued for a plow in the United States.
Other than Wood, inventors like Thomas Jefferson and John Deere each invented cast-iron plows which moved the agricultural standard away from wooden plows, improving durability. The first of these, however, was patented by Charles Newbold of New Jersey in 1793. During the development of the plow, he corresponded with Thomas Jefferson, who had been working on an improvement to the plow along slightly different lines.
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Jethro Wood
Jethro Wood (March 16, 1774 – 1834) was the inventor of a cast-iron moldboard plow with replaceable parts, the first commercially successful iron moldboard plow. His invention accelerated the development of American agriculture in the antebellum period. By simplifying and strengthening the plow design and adding interchangeable parts, Wood's plow broadened accessibility and eased replacements of plows in 19th century America. Wood was also responsible for notable changes in early American patent laws following patent infringements on his plow design.
Jethro Wood was born on March 16, 1774 in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. His parents were John Wood and Dinah Hussey. His family was Quaker, both of his parents being a part of the Society of Friends, and Wood remained Quaker throughout his life, but was not particularly doctrinaire. He was born as the only son alongside five or six sisters. His family was from relative wealth, his father being an early settler to the area and having established himself as one of the community's leaders, he was afforded a generous education accompanied with a library and workshop with which to feed his passion.
According to one account of Wood's childhood:
Once, while still very young, he had shaped a small plow out of metal, not dissimilar to the model which was later to form the basis for modern agriculture. But not satisfied with the mere making of it, and wishing to see it in operation, he fashioned a harness of corresponding size and fastened the family cat to his plow. The protests of the cat attracted the immediate attention of paternal authority, and the future inventor was soundly thrashed for his precocity.
It was in his youth when Wood would first begin his correspondence with Thomas Jefferson regarding their innovations, designs, and progress in new plows. Upon his father's death, Wood inherited a small fortune with which he would pursue his inventions and patents.
Wood spent his adult life in Cayuga County, New York, near Scipio. On January 1, 1793, Wood married Sylvia Howland of White Creek, New York; they had six children together. Following the lead of his parents, Wood would join the Society of Friends, becoming a consistent member.
Wood received a patent on an initial version of a cast-iron moldboard plow in 1814, which improved upon previous designs by utilizing interchangeable parts that allowed for convenient repairs and connected the parts without the use of screws or bolts. It was designed as three separate parts, share, moldboard, and landside that could be replaced individually. In 1815, Wood contacted Moses Brown, an Early American Industrialist, to assist in promoting the plow in Rhode Island. He then sent the plow on to Thomas Jefferson in 1816, who praised the design. Later on, in 1819, he patented a second plow which more closely matched his ambitions for the project. The 1819 patent was the 19th patent issued for a plow in the United States.
Other than Wood, inventors like Thomas Jefferson and John Deere each invented cast-iron plows which moved the agricultural standard away from wooden plows, improving durability. The first of these, however, was patented by Charles Newbold of New Jersey in 1793. During the development of the plow, he corresponded with Thomas Jefferson, who had been working on an improvement to the plow along slightly different lines.
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