Squirrel Cage Tractor

This is the most unusual tractor I've ever seen. "The Squirrel Cage Tractor" appeared in the August 1913 edition of "Gas Review," a magazine for gas engine enthusiasts published in Madison, Wis. All I know about it is what was stated in the magazine: "The most novel tractor yet invented: it works on the principle of a squirrel cage.

A 25 hp engine inside the drum climbs up the in-side like a squirrel in its cage and starts the wheel rolling. The machine, which was in-vented by Mr. S. A. Grant of Thompsonville, Conn., was tried out on his large farm, and it is reported to have pulled plows, harrows and other farm implements with great success. Mr. Grant has had the machine patented in all countries and intends to organize a company and begin manufacturing."

Do you or anyone else know anything more about the tractor? (Michael Busch, Winona, Minn. ) Editor's note: We checked with the Thompsonville area's leading historian, Tony Secondo, at the Enfield (Conn.) Historical Society. He tells us that he's been unable to locate records of S.A. Grant and the tractor he invented. Therefore, it's safe to assume Mr. Grant never got the tractor off the ground, Secondo told us.

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