Perhaps the most apt comparison for the Iconografix Photo Archive Series is a family photo album—a treasure chest of photos with limited—if any—captions. Editor P.A. Letourneau traveled to two archives to provide the book’s wonderful 128 black-and-white photos and illustrations: The Shields Library, University of California, Davis; and the Floyd County Historical Society in Charles City, Iowa. Letourneau edited numerous Photo Archive books in the 1990s—an era prior to the digital resources currently available. The brief three-page Introduction surveys the history of Hart-Parr from its founding in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1897; its subsequent move to Charles City, Iowa, in 1901; to its 1929 merger with the Oliver Chilled Plow Co., Nichols & Shepard Co., and the American Seeding Machine Co. to form the Oliver Farm Equipment Corp. The book features a marvelous array of Hart-Parr tractors—posed for display and at work. Especially appealing views of factory interiors provide a look at early 20th century manufacturing facilities, as well as workers, including women hired during World War I. Unfortunately, many photos lack captions, while the rest provide only two words up to a single brief sentence.

Book Review by Robert Gabrick