Found in the swamp

[petermac]

We recently came across this piece of old farm equipment on the edge of a swamp on our property in the Champlain Valley of central Vermont. Some of it is under water/ice/weeds/brush at this point. Trees that have grown up around it are anywhere from 50-80 years old, so it hasn't moved in a while.

It is a two-wheel, ground drive implement that has chain drives on both sides. I believe one side drives a shaft at the rear that has three 10" or so "gears" or "paddles" on it. The other chain drive goes to the front, for perhaps a conveyor? The entire thing is about 15' long stem to stern, bolted box frame, steel/iron wheels with lugs and dual spokes. I'm guessing horse-drawn.

Agriculture in this area today is dairy, hay, some corn. Sheep were a big thing back in the day, but more on the hill farms. Logging too.

The "paddles" on the rear shaft make me think it's a manure spreader.









Thanks for any help identifying this thing!

 

[Industrial Toys]

I always wondered why, you would think metal and such was very valuable back then, before mass production, but not judging by how much was simply abandoned.

 

[Thomas]

I am thinking maybe manure spreader????

 

[JasperFrank]

Manure spreader. The chains ran the lenght of the wagon bed, with little paddles to push out the manure into the flalling rear paddles.

 

[petermac]

Two votes for manure spreader confirms my guess. Thanks, fellas.

 

[petermac]

Anybody have an idea of age?

 

[Rustyiron]

Yeah, old as ch!t

 

[GLyford]

I always wondered why, you would think metal and such was very valuable back then, before mass production, but not judging by how much was simply abandoned.

It wasn't abandoned so much as stored out of the way of every day operation where it would not be occupying valuable under-roof space. If it were not valued, it would have been gotten rid of, particularly during one of the wartime scrap drives. They put it "right there where we can find it in case we need the parts."

 

[JasperFrank]

Given the type of chain and wheels it was probably horse drawn. That design started in 1900 and was produced well into the 40's. You might still be able to tell if it was adapted to be pulled from a tractor. Yet the wheel and chain design would put it as an early model. 1900-1930s. See if you can find any ID castings on the gear reduction housings. Age can then be pin pointed to with in a few years.

 

[BobG_in_VA]

We had a horse drawn manure spreader that my father (I was born in 1950, my father in 1911, so he grew up on our farm with horses/mules doing the work, until after he got out of the Navy after WWII)..the spreader had been converted to pull type for our 1950 8N Ford...it still had the "driver's seat" on it from when it was horse drawn...and Yeah, the machine you're looking at was a manure spreader..can always tell by the Large chain gear on the rear wheel(s)...Question, Did you see the front wheels? should have a "pivot" in the center to turn it right under where the driver's seat is...BobG in VA