Cyrus McCormick

I freely admit that I'd have never heard of Cyrus McCormick  if not for my friend James. Yesterday we visited old Cyrus' farm, Walnut Grove. This is where, in 1831 at the age of 22, he demonstrated a mechanical reaper. His father had spent more than twenty years working on the idea, and when he gave up working on it, Cyrus stepped in. He built on this and the designs for a similar machine developed b y Patrick Bell of Scotland. Assisted by the family slave, Jo Anderson, Cyrus continued to refine and develop "his" reaper but didn't sell one until 1841. By 1847, they moved production to Chicago -- until then, each reaper was built by hand in the workshop we saw today.


The choice of Chicago was brilliant. As a railway hub, the vast agricultural markets in the Midwest were readily accessible. Shipping through the Great Lakes made raw materials for production cheap and also opened up the international market. In spite of several patent challenges from rival inventors, the company founded at this farm in Virginia went on to become the largest manufacturer of farming machinery in the world.

Two weeks and counting

I was out for an evening stroll‎ through the soft Virginia night air with my friend when it hit me. Fourteen days from now, I'll be on my way to Paris!

I'm starting to get dizzy just thinking of all the last minute errands I need to run when I get back home. I suppose it's time to start working from a check list.

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Coffee and soccer

This being Saturday, two members of the Oliver tribe have soccer
games. On the way to the afternoon game, Fr John asked if I'd like a
coffee. We wound up at Just Love Coffee Roasters in Murfreesboro TN.
They have a good selection of beans and roasts,a knowledgable barista,
a classic rock album on the stereo (Dark Side of The Moon), and two
classic video game cabinets. I haven't seen Centipede in decades!
They also occasionally have live music, as Fr. John has performed
solo acoustic sets there in the past.

The soccer game went to penalty kicks and wound up as a scoreless tie.
Fr. John's son made several really good defensive plays. He may have
been the smallest player on the field, but his speed and grit were great!