Seth Dolk and his son, Stanley, founded Dolk Tractor Company in 1948. This father and son team picked Rio Vista, Ca as the location to start their Oliver Tractor dealership. Set in the heart of the Sacramento River Delta, the Rio Vista area has been a fertile farming region for decades. With the help of Stanley’s father-in-law John MacMichael, Seth and Stanley built the building for their dealership themselves on Front Street (where it still stands today). At the time of opening, this small building housed the sales, parts, and service departments.
By 1960, Seth had retired and Stanley had taken over the business full time. During this time, the Oliver brand continued to grow in popularity. As Dolk Tractor grew, Stanley decided to expand his facilities – adding a showroom and offices to the original building. A separate building, for the service department, was built as well. After more than a decade of building a successful business, Stanley’s son Rod joined the Dolk Tractor team.
During the 1970’s, the Dolks saw their business change. The White Corporation bought out Oliver, so Dolk Tractor was able to take on White’s tractors and planters. Needing a line of high horsepower tractors, Dolk Tractor decided to add the popular Versatile tractor line to meet the changing needs of the farming community.
By 1981, Stanley had retired and Rod expanded the company with a more diverse product line. The Kubota and Hesston tractor lines and the Honda generator brand were added. At this time, Kubota was a newcomer in the American tractor industry that specialized in compact tractors. Although primarily added for their tractors, the Hesston line was taken on and later would become a world leader in the hay industry. This provided Dolk Tractor with a top quality brand of balers and swathers. A greater selection of larger tractors were made available after the Ford Corporation’s tractor division bought out Versatile Tractor. In 1985, Rod’s wife Vicky joined the Company as the office manager.