SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Antique tractors have been on display at the Illinois State Fair for several years, but this year they were moved into the Orr Building.
"The assistant fair manager offered this to us," said Norm Claussen who, along with Mike Hall, heads up this venture. "This year the fair is more ag-based. We are in the same building along with the 4-H and Home Extension."
Claussen added this year fair officials were using antique tractors in the Ag Tour that debuted at this year’s fair. "Mike Hall is driving his Farmall Super C to pull the trailer, twice a day," he noted.
Antique equipment can also be seen outside of the Ag Building next to the new equipment, offering a true perspective of the changes in size and technology over the years. "Lloyd Fraase has several pieces of antique equipment next to the Ag Tent," Claussen said.
Visitors to the Orr Building are taking in the wide variety of brands at this year’s display. There were so many tractors that Claussen said they were setting up outside the building, as well as inside.
John Foster of Minier, Ill., had one of the more unusual tractors, with his Doodlebug. He said it was a kit that was sold to convert a Model A car into a tractor. He and his wife, Barb, have added to the kit he has: "It has all the bells and whistles."
The Doodlebug even has eyelashes on it, which he said "was my daughter’s idea."
The display has just about every brand imaginable on exhibit. There is an Oliver Cletrac from Primrose Farm; Bud Redeford has his John Deere R; and there are Farmalls and several unique tractors that offer visitors a chance to see farming equipment from days gone by.
Besides heading up the antique tractor display, Claussen is also the president/CEO of the Illinois State Fair Museum Foundation, which brought a special vehicle to the fair this year. "Fair officials approached us in March about exhibiting Abraham Lincoln’s hearse at the state fair museum," he said.
The board was quite excited about this. P.J. Staab of Staab’s Funeral Home made a replica of the hearse that carried the former president to his final resting place at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield. The replicated hearse was created for the 2015 Lincoln Funeral Reenactment that took place in Springfield this May.
According to Staab, Lincoln had the largest funeral to date, with an estimated 8 million people participating in or witnessing the procession as it traveled across the country to its final stop in Springfield. "This is such a magnificent piece of history, we were honored to have it here at the museum," Claussen added.
While the 16th President’s hearse does not tie in with antique tractors, Lincoln was responsible for establishing the USDA.
The antique tractor exhibit is sponsored by the Illinois State Fair Museum, Jessie White, Illinois secretary of state, the Prairieland Heritage Museum and the Vintage Ag Assoc.
