Steam tractor
A steam tractor ( Latin: trahere = to pull ) refers to a self-propelled locomobile constructed for the direct pulling of attached devices or wagons .
When it was used in freight transport, it was also called a road locomotive . Street locomotives must not be confused with tram locomotives .
Areas of application
Steam tractors were used in Europe almost exclusively in the transport industry or for drive purposes via the pulley. The use of steam tractors in agriculture for direct pulling of the plow or other agricultural implements was not possible or only to a very limited extent due to the nature of the mostly deep European soils, so the use of a steam plow in Europe usually looked like the plow of two at the edge of the field standing steam tractors was pulled back and forth on a rope. On the much more stable prairie floors of America, however, steam tractors were more often in use than tractors. The operation turned out to be complex and cumbersome, large amounts of coal and water had to be procured.
Replacement of steam propulsion by combustion engines
The steam tractors were replaced by the lighter and easier-to-use tractors , tractors or trucks with internal combustion engines .
Well-known manufacturers of steam tractors and street locomotives included the companies Borsig , Fowler , Kemna and Lanz .
