Our First 100 Years
Caterpillar was built on innovation that helped our customers succeed. Since then, we’ve continued our legacy – creating industry-leading products, technologies and services that help our customers do their best work and build the world around us.
Our centennial milestone is an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of our first 100 years while looking toward the future. Our purpose is to help our customers build a better, more sustainable world. And it guides everything we do.
In the Beginning
During the mid-19th century, our founders, C.L. Best and Benjamin Holt, were competitors on parallel paths.
Benjamin Holt invented a steam tractor to keep farmers working and more productive longer and cheaper than horses could. Holt was a prolific inventor and owned more than 45 patents. The people in Stockton, California, knew him as “Uncle Ben.”
Meanwhile, C.L. Best began a small startup called the C.L. Best Gas Traction Co, which initially focused on round-wheel tractors. But by the end of 1912, Best had a tracklayer ready for production – the C.L. Best 70 Tracklayer, featuring a Best-designed engine. Best’s products soon included the “Tracklayer Creed,” a brand promise of superior quality and outstanding support. Read about our founders and the companies they built here.
Ben Holt (left) is shown here with a member of the British Army, General E.D. Swinton, circa 1918 in Stockton, California.
Testing Benjamin Holt’s track-type-tractor prototype, No. 77, took place on Thanksgiving Day in 1904.
C.L. Best operating a Best 8-16 “Pony” track-type tractor in 1914. This is the only known photograph of Best operating one of his machines.
Holt used this tagline to protect the trademarked “Caterpillar” name.
Emergence of Tracks and the Caterpillar Name
The invention of the track-type tractor – today’s dozer – is Benjamin Holt’s most significant engineering invention. Replacing wheels with tracks allowed heavy steam tractors to more easily prepare agricultural fields without getting stuck in soggy peat soil. Learn how innovation marked the beginning of our flagship product and influenced our company’s name, synonymous with earthmoving equipment.
From Steam to Gasoline
While Holt was famous for developing the tracks, C.L. Best focused his inventions on early gasoline and undercarriage technology, improving product reliability and performance. Some of these early features remain part of today’s Caterpillar tractor DNA.
Switching from steam to gasoline was a substantial energy transition our founders helped customers navigate more than 100 years ago.
C.L. Best was our first chairman of the board.
Holt (shown standing in the photo) realized the limitations of steam power and built an experimental gasoline tractor in 1906.
The first Caterpillar product line was a combination of Holt and Best machines. Here you can see a rare photo of the entire product line at an early CONEXPO (then known as The Road Show) in 1926.
The former Holt plant in East Peoria became the company’s largest manufacturing center after the 1925 merger.
Holt made a number of track-type products for the U.S. military during the war.
The Merger: Caterpillar Tractor Co. is Born
In the mid-1800s, our founders had their own companies, and each was creating innovative lines of farm equipment and other types of machinery. Years passed and both companies grew, creating impressive machines with principal concentration on tractors and harvesters.
By the end of World War I, Daniel Best’s company had a solid financial status, an advanced tractor design and the foundation of a strong dealer group. Holt, however, had a worldwide reputation, the “Caterpillar” trademark, larger factories, and a harvester line that had been around for 40 years.
Blending the best of both worlds, the two companies merged in 1925. And the Caterpillar Tractor Co. was born. Learn more here.
We Haven’t Always Been Yellow
In 1925, we adopted a red wavy “Caterpillar” logo, and our machines were painted battleship gray. But they didn’t stay that way for long. Our machines went from gray with red trim to Hi-Way Yellow with black trim in 1931. The move from gray to yellow was to increase machine visibility on road construction sites.
In 1979, Hi-Way Yellow was discontinued and replaced with Caterpillar Yellow, the color our machines are still known for today. Although we continued making paint formula adjustments to ensure maximum durability and longevity, the yellow hue remains the same.
Check out the evolution of our machine trade dress and logos here. But it’s true that not all Cat machines leave our factories yellow.
By 1930, we had dropped the wavy logo. This Caterpillar Sixty still sports red trim.
Not all Cat® machines are yellow. Caterpillar customer Copart is a global provider of vehicle auction and remarketing services to automotive resellers. In 2021, Copart purchased their 938th Cat 938 Wheel Loader in a special blue color scheme.
The first Caterpillar product line was a combination of Holt and Best machines. This is a rare photo of the company’s entire product line at an early CONExpo (known then as The Road Show) in 1926.
Building the King Albert Canal.
Russell glade graders were frequently paired with Caterpillar tractors. In 1928, Caterpillar acquired the Russell Grader Manufacturing Company and created the Road Machinery Division.
Russell Grader manufactured pull graders and grading attachments for track-type tractors; the acquisition allowed us to produce the industry’s first true motor grader in 1931.
Growing Years, the Motor Grader and Diesel Technology
Soon after the creation of the Caterpillar Tractor Co. in 1925, the formation of a global dealer network made up of former Holt and Best dealers was complete. Cat dealers were focused on service from the beginning, and by 1928, air service was available for parts delivery.
In 1927, Caterpillar introduced its first new product, the Twenty Track-Type Tractor. Although the company felt the effects of the Great Depression, we continued to invest in products and technologies that were important to customers.
Russell Grader Manufacturing Company’s glade graders were frequently paired with Caterpillar tractors. In 1928, Caterpillar acquired Russell Grader and created the Road Machinery Division. The acquisition allowed us to produce the industry’s first true motor grader in 1931.
In addition, leaders like C.L. Best were committed to investing in diesel technology. In 1931, we began producing the Caterpillar Diesel Sixty Tractor. Ten of the first 25 Diesel Sixty Tractors built worked on the King Albert Canal – an 80-mile stretch from Antwerp to Liege, Belgium. The tractors worked daily during the nine-year construction phase.
History of Cat Power
Caterpillar recognized the strong potential of the engine business from the very beginning. But it wasn’t until the introduction of the Caterpillar diesel engine that the company’s power business took off.
At the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (later renamed The World's Fair) in 1915, Caterpillar senior leaders viewed large stationary diesel engines and recognized the potential. The company soon began developing its own diesel engines to replace gas counterparts in the company’s tractors and selling broadly to OEMs for use in power generation, industrial settings, and marine and other applications.
At the time, diesel fuel was about half the cost of gasoline. Since industrial applications often required engines to run around the clock, the savings were significant. In addition, diesel engines have other advantages, including increased power, durability and fuel economy. The result? In 1931, we completed the first diesel production model, and by 1937, we were the world’s largest producer of diesel engines.
It's a leadership position that Caterpillar retains today.
Patricia (Manning) Langenberg, who worked second shift on the bearing cap line in 1944, and her husband, Jack Langenberg circa 1944.
Louis Neumiller began his career as a stenographer and eventually became Caterpillar’s chairman of the board in 1954. Neumiller was instrumental in leading Caterpillar through the World War II years.
Henry Warfield joined Caterpillar in 1942 and left for the Army the following year. After his military service, Henry returned to Caterpillar and became involved with his community and active in politics.
The Changing Face of Caterpillar's Workforce
In 1939, American’s involvement in World War II had a significant impact on the country’s economy and workforce. The unemployment rate dropped almost overnight as men left for the war overseas, and women were hired to replace them on assembly lines, changing the face of the workforce in factories across America.
At Caterpillar, it was no different. In addition to the workforce shortage, production was up as our machines were sent across the globe, supporting the U.S. and its allies on every continent except Antarctica. From 1942 to 1945, Caterpillar operated seven days a week, doubled its workforce, placed women on jobs in research, in the foundry and on assembly lines. The company manufactured special products, trained and sponsored enlisted men and built approximately 51,000 track-type tractors for the military.
Read the story of one young woman, Patricia Manning, who chose a second-shift factory job and became part of the influx of women who filled factory positions during World War II.
Restoring Communities and Helping Them Thrive
From tornadoes and earthquakes to devastating floods and forest fires, Caterpillar products and services have been assisting with disaster recovery and rebuilding throughout our history. Our equipment was used to aid in restoration efforts as early as the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and has continued to play an essential role in disaster recovery.
Since its founding in 1952, the Caterpillar Foundation has contributed to helping improve the lives of people around the world. As a company, Caterpillar works alongside our dealers and our customers to build the societal infrastructure needed to make the world run. Our Foundation focuses on the complementary human, natural and basic services infrastructure needed for individuals to thrive and communities to be resilient.
Best steam tractor No. 188 working during San Francisco earthquake recovery in 1906.
2005 was a devastating year for the U.S. Gulf Coast with the landfall of three major hurricanes: Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Cat® machines were quickly dispatched to help with cleanup and relief efforts.
A Cat® hydraulic excavator in Indonesia assists with cleanup efforts in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.
Pioneer George Rhodes at the controls of a Holt 5-Ton tractor completes a historic 1919 climb up Pikes Peak.
Ten of the first 25 Caterpillar Diesel Sixty Tractors built in 1931 and 1932 worked on the King Albert Canal that stretches from Antwerp to Belgium. The tractors worked daily over a nine-year stretch during construction.
A Caterpillar Sixty hauls huge sections of pipe used to construct the Hoover Dam in 1935.
Newspaper clipping describing Caterpillar diesel engine sets used for NASA’s tracking stations during the Apollo 11 mission to the moon.
Historically Significant Caterpillar Contributions
Building roads, bridges, runways and seaports is vital to our modern infrastructure system. Since our beginning, Caterpillar products have helped support some of the world’s biggest and most famous infrastructure projects.
Customers rely on Caterpillar to help them build a better, more sustainable world. They used our products to help bring water to cities by building water transportation systems like the L.A. aqueduct with Holt machines. They built countless miles of roads like the U.S. Interstate system, the Baghdad Airport Road to allow faster movement of people and products. They climbed Pikes Peak under some of the harshest conditions to pave the way for progress. They constructed the Panama Canal to improve the speed of goods and cargo in sea transport and help work on subsequent expansions. They built dams and bridges, including the U.S.’s Hoover Dam and Golden Gate Bridge, and the Three Gorges Dam in China – creating some of the greatest engineering marvels in the world. One of our generator sets even helped power the Apollo 11 mission to the moon.
Cat® Reman and Our Sustainability Journey
Remanufacturing might just be one of the most important seeds Caterpillar planted in the early 1970s. What began as our narrowly focused effort to remanufacture a single series engine has grown exponentially. Today, manufacturers worldwide recognize and tout the economic and environmental benefits of remanufacturing. But in the early days, there wasn’t much of a model for the remanufacture of engines and other heavy equipment components in the United States.
Caterpillar had to make the mold.
In the simplest form, Cat Reman facilitates an exchange business where customers trade a used part for a remanufactured one at a fraction of the price of a new part. Caterpillar then takes the traded-in part (referred to as core), strips it down to the lowest-level component, and puts it through our remanufacturing process – during which it is turned into a completely new component with a new serial number. The remanufactured part can be sold as a remanufactured part or become part of a remanufactured sub-assembly or engine.
Remanufacturing is a perfect fit to support Caterpillar’s strategy of profitable growth, focusing on customer success by allowing customers to purchase like-new parts for a fraction of the cost of buying new.
In addition, remanufacturing cares for the planet by reducing the consumption of raw materials and conserves energy during the process – ultimately supporting our sustainability efforts. Sustainability is one of Caterpillar’s five Values in Action, in line with our legacy of sustainable innovation that spans nearly a century. Check it out here.
What began as a customer request for a low-cost repair option transformed into one of Caterpillar’s most dynamic divisions— Cat Reman. In 1973, the first Caterpillar remanufacturing plant began production in Bettendorf, Iowa.
For a century, Caterpillar has provided products and services that improve the quality of life and the environment while helping customers fulfill society’s need for infrastructure in a sustainable way. Check out our Sustainability Report and find out how we’re helping our customers build a better, more sustainable world.
At the helm of this remarkable initiative were influential figures who played pivotal roles developing and implementing the Code, including Caterpillar Chaiman & CEO William H. Franklin 1972-1975).
The Code was written by Caterpillar’s first Director of Corporate Affairs Byron Dehaan. The assignment was daunting because there was no template for the project; Caterpillar’s Code was the first lengthy internal document of its kind.
Lee Morgan was Caterpillar’s president at the time of the Code’s writing. Lee embraced the concept of “Preventative Maintenance,” which embodied the initiative’s essence to prevent unethical practices. His job was to gather input from Caterpillar’s top leaders to determine the Code’s content.
The original Code of Conduct cover.
Our Code of Conduct
The early 1970s was a period of remarkable growth for Caterpillar. Sales surpassed $3 billion in 1973 and reached nearly $5 billion by 1975. With a workforce exceeding 80,000 global employees and substantial international expansion, the company was determined to address mounting inquiries from governments, public interest groups, and other third parties regarding its operational conduct.
The Code’s first edition was published on October 1, 1974, and was distributed internally to all Caterpillar managers. Aside from a single-page digest in the 1974 annual report, the Code was not initially promoted or distributed externally. However, that quickly changed when requests poured in from public, corporate, academic and government institutions, and the company decided to honor requests for copies.
The Code – known today as Our Values in Action – is the cornerstone of Caterpillar’s commitment to ethical conduct and responsible corporate citizenship, protecting our reputation and representing Caterpillar’s dedication to transparency and inclusivity. It remains our most important document and one that continues to stand the test of time.
10 Caterpillar Innovations That Changed the World
Dating back to Holt and Best, we’ve focused on innovative solutions that help our customers succeed. In fact, Holt and Best had over 100 patents. Caterpillar employees have followed in their footsteps, turning their passion for product development into solutions that create value and make the world a better place.
In 1931, Caterpillar produced the industry’s first true motor grader.
“Old Betsy” was the nickname of our first, hand-built diesel engine prototype, model D9900. The engine was used in tests for more than 16 months before Caterpillar began diesel engine production in late 1931, and by 1937, we were the world’s largest producer of diesel engines.
The elevated sprocket is an engineering marvel that was introduced in 1977 on a Cat® D10. Today, the elevated sprocket is standard on medium and large Cat® track-type tractors.
Collaborating on Mine Sites of the Future
From Cat MineStar™ Command for hauling autonomous technology, to strategic alliances to achieve zero emissions mining, we’re working with customers to help build new models for surface and underground mining. In 2021, we announced a strategic alliance agreement with Newmont Corporation, the world’s largest gold mining company, to deliver a fully connected, automated, zero-carbon emitting, end-to-end mining system.
Beyond Yellow Iron
To help our customer build a better, more sustainable world and meet the needs of a global population, we have focused on growing our business through a series of acquisitions to further diversify or products and services.
Caterpillar’s first acquisition dates to 1928, with the purchase of the Russell Grader Company that solidified our position in the motor grader industry. Before that, Russell blade graders were frequently paired with Caterpillar tractors. In April 1931, we introduced the first true motor grader – the Auto Patrol – designed as one machine instead of a separate tractor with a fitted grader frame.
Throughout our history, we’ve acquired companies and technologies to grow capabilities and expand our product line. In the 1980s, we purchased several companies to grow our ability to offer innovative solutions. In 1986, we changed our name from the Caterpillar Tractor Co. to Caterpillar Inc.
Russell glade graders were frequently paired with Caterpillar tractors. In 1928, Caterpillar acquired the Russell Grader Manufacturing Company and created the Road Machinery Division.
Russell Grader manufactured pull graders and grading attachments for track-type tractors; the acquisition allowed us to produce the industry’s first true motor grader in 1931.
Caterpillar acquired Solar Turbines International in 1981. Solar designs and manufactures industrial gas turbines.
FG Wilson was founded by Fred Wilson in 1966 with just six employees. Today, FG Wilson is a leading global provider of gen sets.
Perkins was founded in Peterborough, U.K., in 1932, to produce diesel engines for the rapidly growing motor industry.
Caterpillar acquired Perkins in 1988, extending our global position as a full-line diesel and gas reciprocating engine producer.
MWM was founded in Mannheim, Germany, in 1871 by automotive pioneer Carl Benz. Today, MWM is a leading producer of gas engines and gensets.
In 2005, Caterpillar acquired minority ownership of Shandong SEM Machinery co., Ltd. of Quingzhou, China, and completed the acquisition in 2008.
Caterpillar acquired Progress Rail in 2006. Progress Rail is the largest integrated, diversified prover of rolling stock and infrastructure solutions for the global rail industry.
Caterpillar acquired Bucyrus, one of the world’s largest mining equipment manufacturers, in 2011. The purchase greatly expanded our mining equipment offerings.
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Purpose
Our purpose is to help our customers do the work that makes the planet a safer, more sustainable and better place to live.
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Strategy
Caterpillar's global strategy reflects our continuing commitment to meet the needs of our customers and our communities.
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