About International Harvester
International Harvester Company (IHC or IH; now Navistar International Corporation) was an agricultural machinery, construction equipment, vehicle, commercial truck, and household and commercial products manufacturer. It was the result of a 1902 merger between the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester Company, along with three smaller agricultural equipment firms: Milwaukee; Plano; and Warder, Bushnell, and Glessner (manufacturers of Champion brand). International Harvester sold off the Ag division in 1984 and later renamed the company.
History
Foundation
The roots of International Harvester can be traced back to the 1830s, when Cyrus Hall McCormick, an inventor from Virginia, finalized his version of a horse-drawn reaper. The reaper was demonstrated in tests in 1831 and was patented by Cyrus in 1834. Together with his brother, McCormick moved to Chicago in 1847 and started the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company. The McCormick reaper sold well, partially as a result of savvy and innovative business practices. Their products came onto the market just as the development of railroads offered wide distribution to distant market areas. He developed marketing and sales techniques, developing a vast network of trained salesmen able to demonstrate operation of the machines in the field.
McCormick died in Chicago, with his company passing on to his son, Cyrus McCormick, Jr. In 1902, the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester Company, along with three smaller agricultural equipment firms (Milwaukee; Plano; and Warder, Bushnell, and Glessner (manufacturers of Champion brand)) merged together to create the International Harvester Company.
Downfall and ending
By the end of 1979, IH profits were at their highest in 10 years. Yet, the company was still strapped for cash. In the spring and summer of that year, IH began short-term planning for a strike that seemed inevitable. Then on November 1, IH announced figures showing that president and chairman Archie McCardell received a $1.8 million (in 1979 values) bonus. This, along with the fact that the UAW union had been asking for changes, amounted to a strike on November 2, 1979. Soon after, the economy turned unfavorably against IH, and they became entangled in a financial crisis. The strike lasted approximately six months. When it ended, IH had lost almost $600 million (in 1979 value; over $2 billion today).
