The Marion Mfg. Co. was founded in 1886 and located in Marion, Ohio. The most well known item this company manufactured was the "Leader" steam traction engine. The Marion Mfg. Co. also produced portable steam engines (ca 1870's), the Leader skid steam engine, a 10 ton steam roller, the Leader junior separator, and sawmill machinery
In the early 1900's, this firm became the Ohio Tractor Mfg. Co. which lasted to about 1915, when the firm went into receivership. In 1916 the firm was bought by W. H. Houghton who was president of the Houghton Sulky Co. at the receivers sale. The assets of the Ohio Tractor Mfg. Co. were sold to the Leader Tractor Mfg. Co. of Des Moines, IA, with the exception of the factory buildings in Marion, which the Houghton Sulky Co. moved into.
Information Sources:
- Encyclopedia of American Steam Traction Engines, Crestline Publishing Inc., 1984, pg. 167
Steam Power on the American Farm by Reynold M. Wik, 1953 page 253
- The Steam Tractor Encyclopedia by John F. Spalding & Robert T. Rhode, 2011 pages 238-239