When Paul Anderson hit the scene the game changed. Up until that point squats hadn’t really been used as a stand alone lift for building strength and size. Barbells back then couldn’t hold a lot of weight so he used unconventional setups with tractor wheels and 55 gallon drums filled with cement which led to amazing feats including an official 930lbs squat set in 1965 and an unofficial 1200lbs squat. (Performed bare knees and w/o support equipment). One of his favourite exercises was locking out

Bodybuilding Lessons from the Strongest Man in History (Paul Anderson)