1929 The Day 500 Tractors Were Buried Alive During The Great Depression

Описание: September 23rd, 1929. Crawford County, Iowa. 500 brand-new tractors worth $400,000 were deliberately destroyed and buried alive in a massive pit. This isn't a myth this is the shocking true story of how desperate bankers chose to destroy perfectly good farm equipment during the worst agricultural crisis in American history.

In this documentary, we uncover the heartbreaking events that led to this mass burial just weeks before Black Tuesday and the Wall Street crash. Discover why International Harvester Farmalls, Ford Fordsons, and John Deere tractors—machines that could have saved struggling farmers—were smashed with sledgehammers and buried 15 feet underground instead.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
How the post-WWI farm crisis led to mass foreclosures
Why tractor prices collapsed from $800 to $200
The desperate decision by 27 banks to destroy inventory
How 312 tractors were deliberately disabled before burial
The connection to the 1937 Agricultural Adjustment Act
Ground-penetrating radar discovery in 1981

SHOCKING STATISTICS:
500 tractors buried in single day
$400,000 worth of equipment destroyed ($7.2 million today)
173 farmers witnessed the burial
15 feet of earth covered the machines
40 ft long x 20 ft wide x 15 ft deep pit
27 banks participated across Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska

FEATURED TRACTORS:
International Harvester Farmall Regular 20hp, 3,600 lbs
Ford Fordson Model F 20hp, 2,920 lbs
John Deere Model GP $1,200, 2-plow capacity
Rumely Oil Pull 11,000 lbs, kerosene-powered
Hart Parr, Minneapolis-Moline, Case models

THE GREAT DEPRESSION CONTEXT:
This mass burial occurred just 6 weeks before the October 29, 1929 stock market crash. While most historians focus on Black Tuesday, American farmers had been suffering through their own depression since 1921. Wheat prices fell from $2.14 to $0.92 per bushel. Farm bankruptcies hit 13.7 per 10,000 farms. Between 1920-1933, 60 of every 1,000 farmers lost their land.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
The Hutchinson Field burial site became a historical landmark in 1981 after ground-penetrating radar confirmed the location. The monument reads: Here lie 500 dreams, buried alive by an economy that valued efficiency over humanity.

This event foreshadowed New Deal policies where the government would pay farmers to destroy crops and livestock to artificially raise prices—the same logic bankers used in 1929.

LOCATION: Crawford County, Iowa - Hutchinson Farm foreclosed property

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RELATED VIDEOS ON OUR CHANNEL:
Ford Fordson: The Tractor That Saved 10,000 Farms
International Harvester's Depression-Era Survival Strategy
The Dust Bowl: How Tractors Contributed to Disaster
1930s Farm Foreclosures: When Banks Took Everything

SOURCES & RESEARCH:
Agricultural census data (1920-1934)
Crawford County Historical Records
Nebraska Tractor Test archives
USDA Depression-era farm reports
Ground-penetrating radar study 1981

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PRODUCTION NOTES:
This documentary features historically accurate details, period-specific tractor specifications, and economic data from primary sources. All visual representations are based on documented evidence and historical records.

Correction Policy: We strive for historical accuracy. If you notice any errors, please comment with sources and we'll issue corrections.

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