The Gravely Story
The first Gravely tractor was actually a regular, push-by-hand plow utilizing an Indian motorcycle engine. It was mounted on a tractor wheel with belts. Little by little, improvements were made to the tractor, and the Gravely tradition was born.
As interesting as the idea itself was the man behind it.
His name was Benjamin Franklin Gravely. From all early accounts, he was described as an "articulate, tall, handsome gentleman who was a sort of tinkerer, always interested in inventions and so driven that he often worked until 2 or 3 a.m."
Gravely secured 65 patents in his lifetime. Some were obtained in the field of photography, but most of his patents were in the farm implement field. By far the best known of all his inventions was the Gravely garden tractor.

An Educated Man
Benjamin Franklin Gravely was born near Martinsville, Virginia on November 29, 1876. He attended a high school for men located near Mount Airy, North Carolina. In those days, that kind of higher educational training was a bit unusual even for a young man like Ben, whose father owned a plug tobacco business.
After school, Ben took a position as a salesman for the Eastman Kodak Company so he could learn photography. He worked for another photography firm for a short time after he left Eastman Kodak. This job took him to Huntington, West Virginia, sometime around 1900, where he became acquainted with a young photographer and the two went into the portrait business.
In 1902, Ben met his wife, Elizabeth Downie of Pomeroy, Ohio, and they settled in Charleston, West Virginia, where he opened his own photography studio in 1903. With the help of several family members, including his wife's cousin, Marguerite Moore, his son, Charles, and a daughter, Louise, Gravely & Moore Photographers thrived for 60 years, before closing its doors in 1963.

Invents Photographic Equipment
Always looking to build a better idea, Ben Gravely invented a photographic enlarger for his business. Called the "Gravely Auto-Focus Camera Projector," the enlarger made the photographer's job easier. Early promotional material said the machine "saves time, does better work." Instructions were to "turn the crank and get any size print or copy adjustment almost instantaneously." The enlarger boasted capabilities such as adjustable lights, enlargements up to nine diameters, and reductions to 1/5 diameter which at that time were considerable accomplishments in the photographic process.
But photography wasn't Ben's only interest.
As early as 1911, Gravely had been tinkering with a power-driven push plow. He and his large family (five children) had about two acres of land and a large garden to supplement their food bill.