Harry Ferguson - Tractor Engineer & Inventor, Ireland 1983

Описание: Engineer Harry Ferguson best known for his developments to the tractor for use in farming also built his own aeroplane.

John S Moore of the Ulster Folk Museum tells the story of how Harry Ferguson built his own plane and took flight for the first time in 1909.

He just hopped over a hedge and landed in the next field somewhere like 165 feet away from where he had taken off.

His inventive mind later focused on agricultural machinery and in 1935 his new invention meant that implements could be attached to the back of a tractor.

Lisburn Councillor Alderman Charles Poots recalls his father buying one of Harry Ferguson’s creations and how people came from near and far to see his ploughing invention in operation.

Harry Ferguson spent twenty years working on the tractor’s hydraulic system. Charles Poots plans to have Lisburn Council erect a plaque at the Ferguson farm to mark Harry’s achievements.

The Ferguson tractor is now part of the Ulster Folk Museum’s plans for a major exhibition next year.

John S Moore explains how Harry Ferguson became involved with the Ford organisation and ended up taking them to court for four million pounds after they started manufacturing his patent without his name or consent.

An RTÉ News report broadcast on 3 May 1983. The reporter is Gary Honeyford.