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Ploughing the filed with a balance plough involved two steam engines placed at opposite ends of the field, each using a winch to draw a plough backwards and forwards between them. The plough was usually double-sided so that it did not have to be turned around. The considerable power of the engines and the construction of the plough made it possible to plough more furrows at the same time without the risk of tamping down the soil. Steam ploughs were used until World War II.

John Fowler (1826-1864) was a British agricultural engineer and designer of steam-driven ploughs, who lived and worked in Leeds. After his premature death,  John Fowler & Co. was taken over by Robert Fowler and Robert Edison. The company continued to produce agricultural machinery, tractors, locomotives, etc.