Daniel Best (March 20, 1838 – August 22, 1923) was an American adventurer, businessman, farmer, and inventor known for pioneering agriculture machinery and heavy machinery.

Early years

In 1839, Best's father, John, moved the family to

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, where he built a

saw mill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

to cut lumber for the local pioneers. Daniel Best spent the first nine years of his life here, before the family moved again in 1847 to Lee County, Iowa, where they took up farming and raised stock. In 1859, Daniel, following his brother, joined a

wagon train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

heading west to Fort Walla Walla,

Washington Territory The Washington Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...

where he was employed as an ox-tender and

sharpshooter A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with " marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" ...

Life in the West

In Washington Territory, Best was involved in

gold mining Gold mining is the extraction of gold by mining. Historically, mining gold from Alluvium, alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. The expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surface has led to mor ...

, followed by working in sawmills and eventually building his own sawmill. While working in his sawmill, he lost the first three fingers of his left hand, which he later said made him begin to "use his head". He then moved to

Sutter County, California Sutter County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 99,633. The county seat is Yuba City, California, Yuba City. Sutter County is includ ...

to work on the ranch owned by his brother Henry Best, where he began inventing machines.

Inventions

Over a period of 43 years, Best received 41 patents, including an improved

washing machine A washing machine (laundry machine, clothes washer, washer, or simply wash) is a machine designed to laundry, launder clothing. The term is mostly applied to machines that use water. Other ways of doing laundry include dry cleaning (which uses ...

and

combine harvester The modern combine harvester, also called a combine, is a machine designed to harvest a variety of cultivated seeds. Combine harvesters are one of the most economically important labour-saving inventions, significantly reducing the fraction of ...

s. His first invention, patented April 25, 1871, was a portable grain cleaner and separator. Farmers had previously had to haul their grain into town to have it cleaned and separated, but the cleaner and separator could now be brought to the grain. The machine won first prize at the California State Fair in 1871. While continuing to produce grain cleaners, Daniel began working on a single machine that could combine grain harvesting,

threshing Threshing or thrashing is the process of loosening the edible part of grain (or other crop) from the straw to which it is attached. It is the step in grain preparation after reaping. Threshing does not remove the bran from the grain. History of ...

, and cleaning. He sold his first horse-powered combined harvester in 1885, using the money from sales of this machine to invest in work on an improved design for a

traction engine A traction engine is a steam engine, steam-powered tractor used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location. The name derives from the Latin ''tractus'', meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any ...

Traction engine

Best saw the need for an improved

(now also known as a

steam tractor A steam tractor is a tractor powered by a steam engine which is used for pulling. In North America, the term ''steam tractor'' usually refers to a type of agriculture, agricultural tractor powered by a steam engine, used extensively in the l ...

) to pull his combine harvesters. He first purchased the rights to build a steam traction engine from Remington of

Woodburn, Oregon Woodburn is a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. Incorporated in 1889, the community had been platted in 1871 after the arrival of the railroad. The city is located in the northern end of the Willamette Valley between Portland, Oregon, ...

in 1888, before making improvements to the design. Around 1891, Best began to experiment with gas engines to replace the

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs Work (physics), mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a Cylinder (locomotive), cyl ...

s on his tractors. He developed his first gas-powered tractor in 1896. To prove its superiority, he staged a

tug of war Tug of war (also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war, rope pulling, or tugging war) is a sport in which two teams compete by pulling on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal of bringing the rope a certain distance in one direction against ...

between his steam tractor and his new gas-powered engine, demonstrating that the gas-powered engine could pull the steam tractor around the block. Best's traction engines soon received orders internationally. At this time, Daniel was selling $400,000 worth of machinery per year.

Family and later life

Daniel Best married Meta Johanna Steinkamp in Marysville, Yuba County, California, on August 29, 1872. They had nine children, and moved to San Leandro in 1886, where their home stands today as a local landmark. Best retired in 1908, aged 70. His son, Clarence Leo Best, took over the tractor company. Best died in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

on August 22, 1923, and was interred at Evergreen Cemetery.

References

* Backus, R. (2004)
''100 Years on Track''
Retrieved from Gas Engine Magazine archive

Oakland Museum of California * Galloway, Brent D. (1968). ''Daniel Best, a Biography''. Galloway.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Best, Daniel 1838 births 1923 deaths American inventors Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Oakland, California) Businesspeople from California Engineers from California People from Washington Territory Caterpillar Inc. people People from Lee County, Iowa People from Sutter County, California People from Tuscarawas County, Ohio