IHC Was A Major Supplier Of WWII Equipment

IHC Was A Major Supplier Of WWII Equipment When the United States entered WWII in December 1941, the International Harvester Company quickly pivoted from making tractors and farm implements to supplying wartime equipment. Within three years, the company’s 66,000 employees were building 30 different truck models, cargo vehicles, heavy-duty fuel haulers, ambulances, military track tractors and tanks. Harvester was one of the largest suppliers of war goods to the military, including blood bank refrigerators, torpedoes, high-speed guns, ice chests, gears, bearings and ammunition. A website, produced and regularly updated by David Jackson, is dedicated to IHC’s wartime involvement. Numerous photos and statistics document when and where equipment was manufactured. It shows the company building 244,000 military vehicles over four years in Springfield, Ohio. More than 115,000 were built in Fort Wayne, Ind. Torpedoes, tractors, bulldozers, cannon shells, recoil springs and screw machine parts were made in Chicago. Truck engines and anti-aircraft gun mounts were produced in Indianapolis, and anti-tank guns in St. Paul, Minn. Other parts and equipment were produced at the Milwaukee Works plant in Wisconsin. The company also produced more than 13,000 half-tracks and nearly 10,000 caterpillars and bulldozers. Most plants balanced their military production with civilian vehicles needed across the U.S. Unlike today’s vehicles with clever names, IHC wartime trucks were identified by letters and numbers. The M-1-4 signified M for military, 1 for a 1,000-lb. payload, and 4 for 4-WD. The payload designation was for off-road use. On paved roads, payloads could be doubled. The versatile M-1-4 was used for cargo and as an ambulance. The M-2-4 version added a winch and electronics with radio suppression. Jim Allen, who, along with John Glancy, has written extensively about IHC vehicles, says the company manufactured and sold militarized civilian trucks to the U.S. government and later became the Navy’s primary truck supplier. Allen’s Marine veteran friend owns a restored M-2-4 that was in “active duty” at Camp Pendleton, Calif. In its current condition, the truck retains many of its original military markings. IHC also produced many larger trucks, including the M-3L-4, M-3H-4, and M-5-6 models. These were used as wreckers, cargo haulers, refuelers and dump trucks. In addition to U.S. military use, IHC trucks were an important part of the Lend-Lease program to other Allied countries. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, David D. Jackson (www.usautoindustryworldwartwo.com/internationalharvester.htm) or Jim Allen (www.octanepress.com/content/scout-lost-chapter-part-8-ihc-war).

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