Daniel Best

Daniel Best worked in mining, lumber and farming across the Pacific Northwest and California in the mid-19th century. That work showed him the limits of the machinery of the time and led him to invent labor-saving farm equipment.

Daniel Best was an American inventor and a central figure in the history of farm machinery. He moved west in 1859 and worked for years in mining, lumber and farming. After he lost three fingers in a sawmill accident he turned to mechanical invention. He went on to hold more than 40 patents, including portable grain cleaners and combine harvesters. Horses could not pull his large harvesters efficiently, so he began building steam traction engines. His company, Best Manufacturing, became a leading supplier to California agriculture and was later acquired by Holt Manufacturing. His son C. L. Best's company merged with Holt in 1925 to form the Caterpillar Tractor Company. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).