The August Eliason Estate donated this John Deere Model H tractor to the Manitoba Agricultural Museum.

August was born in 1904 to parents who had immigrated to North America from Iceland. They moved to a farm near Arnes, Manitoba. August farmed for a time and then moved to Gimli where he operated a blacksmith and welding shop. When he retired he moved back to the farm where he restored farm machinery. The collected machinery, which included this John Deere Model H, was later donated to the Museum. Magnus Eliason was August Eliason’s younger brother. Magnus was a founding member of the Commonwealth Cooperative Federation and a Winnipeg City Councilor for a number of years.  

John Deere introduced the Model H in 1939. John deere recognized that there were large numbers of farmers who still used horses to farm. A small utility tractor which could replace a horse had the potential to sell in large  numbers. So John Deere produced the Model H rated at 9.68 horsepower on the drawbar and 12.97 horsepower at the belt pulley. The Model H met a small farmers needs for power and it was also a useful tractor to larger farmers who had jobs where the power of a larger tractor was unneeded.  

All Model Hs were equipped with a three speed gear box. As the Model H began production in 1939, all Model Hs were styled. The H followed the outline established by the Model A and had a narrow, tapered hood which allowed for excellent visibility. A complete line of matched implements, including mounted 2 row cultivators was produced for the H.  

The Model H left production in 1947, being replaced in the line up by the John Deere Model M tractor.