History Of Lawnmowers

Lawnmowers have been around for a long time already and
they have changed from being a muscle-powered machines into
fossil-fuel and electric-powered varieties.

However, despite of those changes, their primary purpose
has remained practically the same, that is, to cut grass
and to do it evenly. This article takes a look at the
history of the humble lawnmower.

Edwin Beard Budding invented the lawnmower in 1827. He
created it to cut the grass in sports grounds and large
gardens, or practically any large expanse of grassy areas.
Along with John Ferrabee, Budding patented the product in
1830.

However, it took another thirty years before the Budding
and Ferrabee lawnmowers were mass-marketed. By 1862,
Ferrabee’s company (which acquired the license for
producing the lawnmower) were selling eight models and
produced some 5,000 units until the production came to a
halt the following year.

While most of the lawnmowers produced during the 19th
century were muscle-powered, manufacturers looked into
other power sources such as horses and steam.

However, the invention of fuel-powered motors gave rise to
motorized lawnmowers sometime in the mid to late 19th
century to the early part of the 20th century.

Several innovations were made during the 20th century with
the introduction of smaller engines which made for more
compact and more fuel-efficient mowers.

Then there was the hover mower in the 1960s. This type of
mower literally floated above the ground and this design
enabled them to be used to cut taller grasses and even
small shrubs.

Finally, there are the robotic mowers. Although they still
need a little help from humans in order to operate, much of
their work is automated which saves people a lot of time.