Joseph Dain observes farmers stacking hay by hand near his Meadville, Missouri home and begins developing hay handling equipment. Farmers are slow to accept machines at first but Dain guarantees his equipment and works with the farmers in the field during their use to earn their confidence. His first factory is in Springfield, Missouri which he quickly outgrows and opens a larger facility in Armourdale, Kansas. The Dain Mower Company is established in 1887 in Carrolton, Missouri. Dain Manufacturing Company is incorporated in 1890
In 1908 Joseph Dain purchases a large tract of land along the Welland Canal where the Dain Manufacturing Company is chartered. Emphasis is on manufacturing hay handling equipment for which he receives his first patent in 1882. Within the next ten years Dain becomes the largest manufacturer of hay stackers. Lesser items included corn binders, tillers, harrows, and cultivators. In 1900, Dain Manufacturing moves to Ottumwa, Iowa for better rail access as they are now providing equipment for John Deere branches across America. John Deere acquires exclusive rights to sell Dain hay equipment in 1905 and buys the company in 1910. Joseph Dain dies in 1912.
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