Founded as a mail order tractor parts business in 1938, the first Tractor Supply Co. retail store was founded in 1939 in Minot, North Dakota. As of 2007, the chain has over 700 stores in 38 states. TSC is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville.
TSC was part of a group that purchased some of the leases of the bankrupt Quality Stores, Inc., which had operated nearly 300 stores in 30 states under the names: CT Farm & Country; Country General; Quality Farm & Fleet; County Post; Central Farm and Fleet, and FISCO. TSC was not at all associated with Quality Stores Inc.
In November, 1966, TSC opened its first Ontario location in London, Ontario. In 1987, when there were ten Ontario locations, the American parent company sold these locations to a management team led by Murray Cummings. As of May 2008, there are thirty-eight TSC stores in Ontario, mostly in the southwest, and 2 stores in Manitoba (Winnipeg & Brandon).
In Canada, TSC brands itself as "The Incredible Country Hardware Store."