Mower History: Methodology

Our Approach

In preparing this new section of the website our approach has been simple: find as much information as possible and make it all available in one place for everyone to view and search.

Very little of the information we have collected is "new" in the sense that most of it can be found readily online or in widely available publications. However, as part of this process, we are aiming to present it in the context of the history and development of the earliest lawnmowers. 

This project is not complete, nor is it a one-off. 

Ultimately this archive will include information up to the mid-1860s. 

The first phase of the project, launched in January 2026, covers the period before and just after the invention of the lawnmower. During our research we discovered so many advertisements and similar documents that it was not possible to present everything as part of stage one. Instead, we decided that publishing the information from the earliest years of the lawnmower would help focus attention on this vital and important period.

So far we have identified well over 500 pieces of information from the relevant period. In the coming weeks and months we will publish these and we expect it will build into a large and comprehensive archive of material available. 

In the meantime, it it inevitable that some of the pages currently published in phase one mention (specifically or in passing) events and documents "in the future" that will only be available on the site later. 

As part of the project we have created transcriptions of a large number of documents, in particular patents, advertisements, and magazine articles from the period. In doing so we hope that these texts can become more accessible and searchable for anyone doing their own research. Although all of these transcriptions have been checked, it is possible that they contain errors due to misreading of the original or mistyping the new text. If you spot something, please let us know and we will check and amend accordingly.

We will happily include any new or additional information that anyone is able to provide. We will also be happy to revise or amend any information should evidence be provided. 

How You Can Help

If you have any information that you would like us to include, please send us an email.

If you spot an error, please let us know.

We will reply to you as soon as we can.