Another McCormick Company competitor was John Henry Manny of Rockford, Illinois.
 After the Manny Reaper beat the McCormick version at the Paris Exposition of 1855, McCormick filed a lawsuit against Manny for patent infringement.
McCormick demanded that Manny stop producing reapers, and pay McCormick $400,000.

The trial, originally scheduled for Chicago in September 1855, featured prominent lawyers on both sides.
McCormick hired the former U.S. Attorney General Reverdy Johnson and New York patent attorney Edward Nicholl Dickerson.
Manny hired George Harding and Edwin M. Stanton.
Because the trial was set to take place in Illinois, Harding hired the local Illinois lawyer Abraham Lincoln.
The trial was moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, however.
Manny won the case, with an opinion by the State Supreme Court Judge John McLean.
Lincoln did not contribute to the defense.
Stanton had objected to Lincoln's presence, referring to him as "that damned long armed ape."
After later being elected President, Lincoln chose Stanton as his Secretary of War.

In 1856, McCormick's factory was producing more than 4000 reapers each year, mostly sold in the Midwest and West.
In 1861, however, Hussey's patent was extended but McCormick's was not.
McCormick's outspoken opposition to Lincoln and the anti-slavery Republican party may not have helped his cause.
McCormick decided to seek help from the U.S. Congress to protect his patent.

In 1871, the factory burned down in the Great Chicago Fire, but McCormick heeded his wife's advice to rebuild, and it reopened in 1873 even as McCormick's health declined, so she took a greater role in the family's business as well as philanthropic affairs.
In 1879, brother Leander changed the company's name from "Cyrus H. McCormick and Brothers" to "McCormick Harvesting Machine Company".
He wanted to acknowledge the contributions of others in the family to the reaper "invention" and company, especially their father.
Another McCormick Company competitor was John Henry Manny of Rockford, Illinois.  After the Manny Reaper beat the McCormick version at the Paris Exposition of 1855, McCormick filed a lawsuit against Manny for patent infringement. McCormick demanded that Manny stop producing reapers, and pay McCormick $400,000.
The trial, originally scheduled for Chicago in September 1855, featured prominent lawyers on both sides. McCormick hired the former U.S. Attorney General Reverdy Johnson and New York patent attorney Edward Nicholl Dickerson. Manny hired George Harding and Edwin M. Stanton. Because the trial was set to take place in Illinois, Harding hired the local Illinois lawyer Abraham Lincoln. The trial was moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, however. Manny won the case, with an opinion by the State Supreme Court Judge John McLean. Lincoln did not contribute to the defense. Stanton had objected to Lincoln's presence, referring to him as "that damned long armed ape." After later being elected President, Lincoln chose Stanton as his Secretary of War.
In 1856, McCormick's factory was producing more than 4000 reapers each year, mostly sold in the Midwest and West. In 1861, however, Hussey's patent was extended but McCormick's was not. McCormick's outspoken opposition to Lincoln and the anti-slavery Republican party may not have helped his cause. McCormick decided to seek help from the U.S. Congress to protect his patent.
In 1871, the factory burned down in the Great Chicago Fire, but McCormick heeded his wife's advice to rebuild, and it reopened in 1873 even as McCormick's health declined, so she took a greater role in the family's business as well as philanthropic affairs. In 1879, brother Leander changed the company's name from "Cyrus H. McCormick and Brothers" to "McCormick Harvesting Machine Company". He wanted to acknowledge the contributions of others in the family to the reaper "invention" and company, especially their father.
Cyrus McCormick