Cletrac

From Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki

A Cletrac HG31 at Scorton North Yorkshire 2009

re write required.

CLETRAC, INC., a manufacturer of tractors for military and civilian use, was organized by ROLLIN H. WHITE† as the Cleveland Motor Plow Co. in 1916, with capital of $6 million. White, a founder of the WHITE MOTOR CORP., had 10 years earlier formed this new firm to produce the crawler-type tractor he had developed for general farm use. First located at Euclid Ave. and Lamb, the plant later moved to 19300 Euclid Ave. Renamed Cleveland Tractor Co. in 1917, the company sold 40,000 tractors in the U.S. and 70 foreign countries during its first decade. In the early 1930s, the needs of the Civilian Conservation Corps. and public works projects kept the plant open and by 1937 the firm, which employed 1,500 workers, enjoyed record tractor sales here and abroad. Two years later, the company introduced 3 new lower-priced tractors with 4-cylinder engines for use by the small farmer. The military application of Cleveland Tractor's products became dominant during World War II when the firm manufactured a new, high-speed tractor for hauling artillery. Although the company received a steady flow of orders, the low profit in defence work and the research costs for new products convinced company President White to sell the company to the 96-year-old Oliver Corp. of Chicago in 1944. Oliver invested $3.5 million in the ageing plant to develop new products. However, Cleveland Tractor remained unprofitable until the Korean War revived its business. When White Motor Corp. took a 2-year option to buy the tractor plant and acquired exclusive rights to the Oliver name in 1959, Oliver renamed its Cleveland facilities Cletrac Inc. In 1961 White Motor bought the local Cletrac inventories, engineering designs, and machine tools and closed the plant, consolidating all production at a second plant in Charles City, Indiana.

[edit] Model Range

Cletrac M2 in USAF colours at Kettering Steam Fair, fitted with front winch

• Cletrac BD - 1936-56 2,456 built
• Cletrac DG - 1936-56 2,890 built
• Cletrac DD - 1937-58 13,890 built
• Cletrac FD - 1938-44 1,267 built - A 13 ton 113 hp Hercules 6-cylinder Diesel (largest model in 1940s)
• Cletrac HG - 1939-44 15,864 built
• Cletrac M2 - 1941 7 ton 137 hp Hercules 6-cylinder Gasoline High speed tractor for USAF fitted with winch & Compressor for aircraft support roles.

[edit] Preserved machines

These are not common machines in the UK and most of the imported ones were military models, brought in by the USAF in the war.

• A Cletrac M2 (shown above), this machine can be seen at shows in the midlands.

[edit] See also

• Oliver
• White Farm Equipment
• Shows and Meets - Events featuring vintage machinery and/or modern tractors and plant.
• Clubs Listing - clubs relating to collecting Vintage machinery.

[edit] References

• Cleveland history
• Tractor & Machinery Magazine, for some model numbers and build Quantities.

[edit] External Links

• Cletrac specs and info - enthusiasts web site