Our Legacy

Mining machines driving on job site
Mining machines driving on job site

Caterpillar Company History

Enjoy the ingenious machines from our rich heritage, and more importantly, the people who founded and built the company one breakthrough at a time. Beginning with Benjamin Holt and C. L. Best, the people of Caterpillar have always been – and continue to be – extraordinary.

Our History

Over the last century we’ve grown with our customers. We’ve changed together as the world has changed: creating, building, problem solving, innovating, testing, servicing and improving. When customers choose our products, services and solutions today, they also gain nearly 100 years of experience and expertise. 

Explore our History
Historic collage with timeline
Historic collage with timeline

A Glimpse into Our Corporate Archives

Our Corporate Archives team has the important role of telling, preserving and showcasing Caterpillar’s history and the role our equipment, customers and people have played in projects around the world.  

See the Archives
Cases in Caterpillar's Archives Facility
Cases in Caterpillar's Archives Facility

View Our History by the Decades

1800s | 1900s | 1910s | 1920s | 1930s | 1940s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s

Featured from our Heritage Collection

Each week we open our vault to share stories of our people and products over the last 95+ years. Check out our most recent features here, or view the collection.

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Homefront Heroes

2023 – Learn about the men and women who worked tirelessly during World War II to help the Allies win one of the greatest conflicts the world has ever seen. Join Corporate Archives Manager Lee Fosburgh and host Rusty Dunn as they tell the story of Caterpillar’s Homefront Heroes.

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employees during WW2
employees during WW2

As Big as a House

1998 – Caterpillar unveiled the world’s largest mining truck, the Cat® 797, in 1998. The 797 was equal in size to a 4,500-square-foot, three-story house, and weighed 1.23 million pounds. 

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Cat 797
Cat 797

Engineers Week

2023 – “Old Betsy,” Caterpillar’s first diesel prototype engine, forever changed the company yet was almost lost to history. Corporate Archives Manager Lee Fosburgh and host Rusty Dunn tell us the story of one of Caterpillar’s most valuable historical artifacts.

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Old Betsy Diesel Engine, 1930.
Old Betsy Diesel Engine, 1930.

ACMOC 

Visit the Antique Caterpillar Machinery Owners Club website to learn more about the organization, connect with other members, and find out more about upcoming events and meetings.

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