The story of Henry Danuser begins with his father, Kasper Berry (K.B.) Danuser, a Swedish immigrant who came to America in 1880 and started Danuser Machine Co. in 1910 with a grain threshing wagon. The company started in Readsville, Mo., until Kasper moved his family to Fulton along a railway.
In the spirit of his father's ingenuity, in 1941 Henry built the first rear-mounted blade for the tractor and in 1945, introduced it to the world. The rest, as they say, is history.
"Our motto is the same today as it was then," says Janea Danuser, Henry's granddaughter. "It's a quote from our great grandfather 'Good enough won't do, it must be right.' It's actually on a large crane that would have been from Henry's era of the building. That's our heritage, that's our brand."
A family-run agricultural and industrial attachments manufacturer, the company's current tagline reflects its leadership's present-day commitment to excellence with a nod to its past by emulating the spirit of those family members like Henry before them and keeping the company focused on quality.
With over 100 years of experience with the latest in manufacturing technology, the current leadership is dedicated to maintaining its benchmark status in industrial and agricultural attachments.
According to a July 2023 Manufacturing Today article, Henry worked hard on operations and products upon inheriting the business. It reports that Henry's first product was a portable air compressor, before designing and building a tree-moving machine.
"In 1941, my grandfather, Henry, built the first rear-mounted blade in the U.S. for a tractor. From there, he continued to mass produce the first post hole digger in the country too," Glenn Danuser, who runs the company with his sister, explains.
His mass-production of the product "catapulted the family-owned firm to the fore of the market. Attachments, in droves, followed, securing Danuser's reputation for reliable and robust agricultural and industrial machinery," Glenn adds.
A segment of the company's chronological history written by Jerry Danuser (Henry's son and former owner-executive, who passed away in November 2024) offers insight into Henry's ingenuity and innovation.
From 1947-57, Danuser built diggers for Ford Motor Co., and from 1956-69 the company built blades for J.I. Case Co.