A North Dakota tractor collector has almost single-handedly saved what many refer to as the inspiration for the modern tank.
Outside of Minot North Dakota, John Novodvorsky Jr is saving a piece of military history. He is working on restoring a Holt "Crawler" Tractor. The beast is a five ton device that was attributed as being the forerunner of the tracked tank in combat. They were used by the US Army on the Western Front during World War One to pull large artillery pieces in the mud of Flanders. It is believed that the British designers of the original armored tanks of the same time based their own designs of the weapons track system on the 1905-era commercial Holt.
The Holt Company was founded by Benjamin Holt in 1884 and became a driving force in the tractor business. Today it is better known as Caterpillar.
Mr. Novodvorsky has been restoring his Holt for the past ten years, even getting his wife and neighbors to pitch in with the effort. He is almost done and plans to display the device at the Dakota Territory Air Museum in Minot when it is.
Well done Sir!
