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Skid steer loaders are well known for their agility and versatility in terms of service applications– but many don’t know how they have evolved over the last 50 years to become the indispensable piece of machinery that they are today.
According to Wikipedia & skidsteerhistory.com the first skid steer prototype was a three-wheeled loader invented in 1957 by Louis and Cyril Keller in Rothsay, Minnesota. The brothers owned a small manufacturing and fabricating business – and were responding to a local farmer’s request to build something that could better maneuver his burgeoning turkey farm.
Photo Credit: skidsteerhistory.com
After producing a few initial prototype models, the Keller loaders were growing in demand. In order to continue producing the equipment, the Kellers were in need of some start-up capital. Late in 1957 they were introduced to Les Melroe of Melroe Manufacturing Company of Gwinnet, ND by a family member. Melroe Manufacturing bought the rights to the Keller loader in 1958 and the Keller brothers were hired on by the company to finish development of their prototypes and bring the loaders to a mass-market audience. According to Bobcat Fifty Years by Marty Padgett cited from Wikipedia, the Melroe M400 was the first four-wheel true skid steer loader. However, according to skidsteerhistory.com – which is written in part by the son of Louis Keller, the ‘Bobcat’ name became associated with the skid steer loader in 1963. This was the year that the M444 Melroe Bobcat was released. When looked up in the dictionary, the term Bobcat was described as “tough, quick and agile” – traits which perfectly suited the loader’s characteristics.
Nowadays, many equipment companies including CASE, Cat, Gehl, Mustang, John Deere, Komatsu, Kubota and many others have their own variations of the skid steer loader – although Bobcat still possesses a significant portion of skid steer market share having been part of its history from the beginning. It’s interesting to see how over 50 years – such a quintessential piece of equipment has been developed from a single prototype designed to help out a turkey farmer manage his business.
(Modern Bobcat Skid Steer Loader - Photo Credit: Andrew Ciscel, Minneapolis, USA - Wikimedia Commons)