David Bradley was a "Pioneer Plowman". David Bradley was born in Groton, New York on November 8, 1811. After working with his brother, C. C. Bradley, for several years in Syracuse, he relocated to Chicago in 1835. Initially he was in the employ of Jones, King & Co. and helped to build the first foundry in Chicago, known as the "Chicago Furnace". From the late 1830s until the 1850s David Bradley farmed in Lake County, Illinois, made bricks, and later farm machinery, in Racine, Wisconsin, and was a lumberman in Michigan. In 1854, he returned to Chicago.
Company
In 1884, he purchased a plow company from his brother in law, and soon partnered with Conrad Furst to create Furst and Bradley. Furst and Bradley eventually grew to occupy an entire city block at Fulton and Desplaines Streets in Chicago. In 1884 David Bradley and his sons purchased Furst's share of the business, and the company was renamed the "David Bradley Manufacturing Company". In 1895 the company was relocated to North Kankakee, which was later renamed "Bradley, Illinois" in honor of the man and the company. In 1910, the Bradley family sold the factory to Sears, Roebuck and Co., at which time it was renamed the "David Bradley Manufacturing Works". The name was subsequently changed to David Bradley Manufacturing Company and in 1958 the company introduced the Garden Riding Tractor and David Bradley became the largest manufacturer of garden riding tractors in the world. Sears also sold gasoline engines manufactured by Briggs and Stratton under David Bradley, replacing the previously used Economy name. In 1962 David Bradley Manufacturing Company and the Newark Ohio Company were merged into a single unit under the name Newark Ohio Company. The new company manufactured power lawn mowers, among other products. In 1964 another merger took place and the Newark Ohio Company was merged into the Geo. D. Roper Corporation with the plant in Newark, Ohio continuing to manufacture outdoor power equipment including riding and single power lawn mowers.
Family
On 25 Feb 1838 in Chicago, David Bradley married Cynthia Abbott of Barre, Vermont. They had six children:
Edgar Bradley, b. 15 Jan 1841 Libertyville, IL; d. there 18 Sep 1841.
Mary Ellen Bradley, b. 14 Sep 1842 Racine, WI; of Chicago, IL; d. 1 Oct 1899 Mt. Vernon, Westchester County, NY; m. Chicago 10 Oct 1865 George Cadogen Morgan.
Joseph Harley Bradley, b. 30 Sep 1844 Racine, WI; of Chicago, IL; m. Brooklyn, NY 1 Mar 1871 Margina J. Richards of New York, NY.
Adelbert Bradley, b. 15 Apr 1847 Racine, WI; d. there Sep 1848.
David Bradley, b. 15 Feb 1849 Chicago, IL; d. there 15 Feb 1849.
