The Toro Motor Company was founded on July 10, 1914 to supply engines for The Bull Tractor Company, marketers of the most popular brand of farm tractors in the United States. Toro engines were soon powering Bull Tractors on farms across the United States and Europe. Although Bull would soon fade from the scene, Toro flourished by continually reinventing itself to capitalize on new opportunities.
The Toro Motor Company was founded on July 10, 1914 to supply engines for The Bull Tractor Company, marketers of the most popular brand of farm tractors in the United States. Toro engines were soon powering Bull Tractors on farms across the United States and Europe. Although Bull would soon fade from the scene, Toro flourished by continually reinventing itself to capitalize on new opportunities.
In 1919, Toro helped launch an important new industry with the development of The Toro® Standard Golf Machine; the first tractor built specifically for mowing large areas of grass to replace horse-drawn golf course mowers. The May 8, 1943 issue of The Commercial West, states, it “was the start of a new mechanical mowing machine era.” A series of Toro innovations soon followed that by 1925 established Toro as the world’s largest manufacturer of golf equipment.
Toro introduced its first power mower in 1924. Since that time, customers have trusted Toro to help care for all the places they call home. As the May 1950 issue of Fortune magazine explained, Toro “almost singlehandedly” turned the rotary lawnmower into an overnight success. Early rotary mowers featured open decks with exposed blades. According to Fortune, “Because people have been afraid of accidents,” the rotaries had not been widely accepted until “Toro enclosed the blade to ensure safety.” Consumer purchases of rotary mowers started to climb. Through the years Toro has introduced many other lawnmower industry firsts including self propel drive, electric start, bagging, Recycler® technology and Personal Pace®. Toro’s heritage of innovation can be seen today in our latest snow blowers, irrigation products, zero turn riders and the TimeMaster™.
Toro continues to lead by focusing on creating high performance, environmentally friendly solutions to help our customers around the world preserve the beauty, productivity and sustainability of the land.
