Triumph Corn Planter
Display: Farm to Fork
Culinary Technique: distribution
Date: c. 1900
Manufacturer: Eclipse Hand Corn Planter
Dimensions: 33" h x 11" w x 3" d
Before handheld corn planters were invented in the 1850s, farmers carried a sack of seed corn on their shoulder and used a stick to poke a hole in the soil into which they dropped a seed. Handheld planters like the Triumph allowed a farmer to plant acres a day without bending over to insert each seed. The operator gripped both handles to push the point into the soil, cutting a hole to accept the seed. Snapping the two handles together slid open the seed box, releasing the seed. After mechanical planters became common, farmers used handheld planters to fill in gaps and plant washed-out areas in a field.