I was cruising the Presurfer blog this morning, when I saw a post about steam-powered tractors. I know this sounds dim-witted, but somehow it had never occurred to me that steam-powered tractors were ever popular. According to Wikipedia, between the late 1800’s and early 1900’s “traction engines” were a big deal, and even played a role in establishing more cooperative farming (the machines were so valued that neighbors would join together to farm each other’s land and make the work go faster?!). Anyway, since they were popular until lighter, more reliable gas tractors became all the rage in the 1920s, I figured I’d post a few pics of the hulking beasts, for your viewing pleasure.