[2] The Mannys visited George Esterly (1809–1893) who was manufacturing some of the first mechanical grain harvesting machines in Heart Prairie, near modern-day Janesville Wisconsin a short distance to the north.

There he could have more reapers manufactured by the firm Blinn & Emerson, and have them transported on the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad line.

The Mannys had heard that George Esterly, of Wisconsin, was making machines that would harvest grain.

John H. Manny remained with Esterly at his shop to help him complete the "header", the part with the cutter bar.

It was this insight into the construction of harvesting machinery that inspired the Manny family to develop their own reaper.

Subsequently, the Mannys conceived the idea of creating a number of additional reapers that were to be sold to neighboring farmers.

In the spring of 1854, the Talcott brothers, Wait and Sylvester along with Jess Blinn and Ralph Emerson organized J.H.

The trial, originally scheduled for Chicago, Illinois in September 1855, had prominent lawyers on both sides.

Although Manny won the case, with an opinion by Supreme Court Judge John McLean,[6] Lincoln ended up not contributing to the defense.