Saving Orange County’s Farms - Can You Dig It?

Post brothers' plow in Westminster

At the southwest corner of Brookhurst Avenue and Bishop Place in Westminster sits a gigantic agricultural plow that is one of the great wonders of the county. You may call it the "world's largest plow" or even the "plow that saved Orange County" – both handles would be accurate.

Digging into the Past

The plow was built back in 1937 by the Post brothers, Charles and Norman, to help rescue thousands of acres of farmland all but destroyed by the flooding of the Santa Ana River. The tons of silt that had been deposited over the rich topsoil jeopardized a huge amount of local agriculture. But thanks to this massive plow (which weighs 15 tons, is 37 feet long and 12 feet high), over the years many farms were restored. Today it sits on display for free viewing and it's not until you stand next to the 86-inch blade that you really get a sense of just what kind of metallic beast we are talking about. Back when it was in use, it was drawn by a series of no less than five Caterpillar tractors!

The Big Yellow Plow Works for the Red, White and Blue 

Post brothers' plow digs a ditch

And the plow wasn't just used to restore thousands of acres of farmland. It was also put to work cutting ditches for pipelines and, in the early 1940s, it went on to a greater cause than just Orange County: the Post brothers plow actually took part in the war effort. It was shipped to Nevada where it was used to dig trenches for cables at atomic bomb test sites.

Not long ago, as part of my PBS TV series “Forgotten Orange County,” my cohost Maria Hall-Brown actually found rare footage of the famed plow in action.

I hope you enjoy this interesting footage. It provides some truly interesting context for visitors and locals alike that may be unaware of just how much farmland there used to be in Orange County. This plow, which was once dragged throughout the county helping to rescue many community farms, is a testament to ingenuity and solid construction and looks as if could be put back to work today.