Two Cylinder Magazine

JOHN DEERE ORCHARD TRACTORS

Above: The fine-looking, beautifully restored “GPO” was photographed at a past Two-Cylinder Expo. These tractors are very scarce today. Not including the six pre-production crossovers, 712 were built; but that was over 75 years ago and most of them have disappeared.

Left: This retouched line art of a “GPO” with industrial wheel equipment and citrus fenders is somewhat of a mystery. Although these tires and wheels would have been available, it is highly unlikely that anyone working an orchard would have requested them.

Right: A variation of the “GPO” was created especially for use on golf courses. Only one is listed in the Serial Number Register, and it appears to have been changed back to a regular “GPO” before being shipped nearly two years after it was built. Prior to that, it had been on display, etc. The serial number was 15407, and the final listed shipping point was Urbana, Illinois.

It may seem a far stretch for orchard or grove use, but in the early 1950s the Lindemans devised two versions of a crawler attachment for the Model “D”. Cumbersome to say the least, one of the units was tested by John Deere engineers and failed to show significant improvement in pulling power. But that’s not all the Lindemans were after; they wanted traction on the wet, slippery slopes of Washington, and the crawler did provide that.

Note that the inset photos of each version, taken while the tractors were on display in front of the factory, show them without fenders, while the field shots show the fenders in place. Value of either unit today? Unimaginable.


With John Deere involved in producing “GPO” Tractors, the Lindemans wasted no time in testing the tractor with a crawler track attachment in place of wheels. The smaller tractor made far more sense than the “D” for grove and orchard use, and right at two dozen were built. Today they are highly prized by the few collectors fortunate enough to own one.


The photo provides a visual record of the tangled mess that used to be common in 1930s-era groves before the days of efficient tractor-powered grooming.	The little Lindeman–John Deere “GPO” Crawler had no problem tugging heavy skids of fruit crops.

The Lindeman–John Deere “GPO” Crawlers (usually just referred to as the “GPO” Crawler) were originally fitted with fenders. However, those run in more open terrain typically had the fenders removed, thus making service more accessible. As of this time, most of the fenders have been lost.

The classic Lindeman–John Deere “GPO” Crawler, rare by any standards.


Groves and orchards weren’t the only uses for the “GPO” Crawler, as can be attested to by this photo of one putting its way through a hopfield, also known as a hop garden or hop yard. The Yakima Valley was (still is) an ideal site for growing hops. Incidentally, the only major commercial use for hops is in beer. The U.S. is second in hops cultivation, with Germany as the leader.	Success with the “GPO” Crawler; a team of Lindeman Power Equipment Co. employees monitored the performance of several Lindeman-designed implements that improved orchard operations.

A superb Lindeman–John Deere “GPO” Crawler at a past Worldwide Two-Cylinder Club Expo.

Left: The “GPO” was discontinued with Decision No. 5399, dated March 28, 1935, which stated: “Due to the introduction of the General Purpose Model ‘AR’ Tractor, production of The General Purpose ‘GP’ and General Purpose Orchard Tractors will be discontinued. Effective: When approximately 30 Orchard Tractors now in process are completed.”

The last “GPO”, serial number 15732, was shipped to Roseburg, Oregon, on April 9, 1935.

The four-page sales literature (left) dated December 1935, announced both the Models “AO” and “BO”. It was preceded by a far more comprehensive piece.

The earliest “AO” Tractors had a short intake stack as shown here, instead of the later “mushroom”-style AA887R Air-Intake Stack that matched the later mushroom-style AA888R Exhaust Opening Cover. The “AOs” were serial numbered in with the “ARs”, starting at 250000. The first “AO” was 250075, built May 22, 1935.

Top: The classy “BO” is among the most sought-after uncommon tractors because of its size, relative safety with the enclosed platform, and what some refer to as the “cuteness factor.” The first “BO” was built on September 27, 1935, and records indicate that just over 5000 were produced. However, 1649 were built into Lindeman–John Deere Crawlers.

Bottom: For several years, this photo had been mostly overlooked because it was believed that the negative had deteriorated. Further information and investigation suggests that the “BO” was simply painted white by the owner, as were other tractors in their fleet over a span of many years. Readers having further information about the white orchard tractors are encouraged to write.

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