All About Tractors

By PAUL WALLEM 

 Google defines “collector” this way: “A person who collects things of a specified type, professionally or as a hobby.”

In my view, neither of these describe a tractor collector.

Caleb started driving his dad’s tractor at age 6. By his sophomore year in high school, he had obtained his first old tractor. Now he and his wife of five years have accumulated seven tractors of all sizes. He certainly isn’t a professional collector. Neither is the collection a hobby, because he farms with them. He just grew up around tractors, loves having them. It’s his passion.

I interviewed 15-20 collectors while writing my 2019 book, THE BREAKUP of IH. Recently I talked to several more at a major auction of restored older tractors. There doesn’t seem to be a particular number owned that would make them a collector.

Then there’s this vastly different collection. Dan Steiner runs Steiner, a large organization that builds new parts for old tractors of all kinds. He told me about his family’s collection. Forty-five years ago his parents started the company. Through the years his dad has accumulated 400 tractors of all brands and condition. (The company also lends support to 370 tractor clubs).

Ninety years ago, a Minneapolis-Moline dealer in Illinois accumulated eight MM

models. All these years later his children and grandchildren have kept the collection together and well maintained. None are in use but on display each year at county fairs. For this family, the goal is to keep alive the memories of their earlier families.

Dan was a Kansas farm boy that was told at age 3 to drive their Farmall B straight ahead so his dad could throw hay bales to the cattle. Little Dan felt he was “farming.” Now, over 60 years later he still has the “B” and the memories that go with it, along with several others, including a 1929 McCormick Deering 10-20 and a 1937 F-20. They all bring back memories.

The late Jerry Mez collected tractors during a lifetime in his dealership, after growing up in that same building. He and his wife chose to create a museum in the 90s for their collection. He wanted children and grandchildren to see his assemblage of 200 tractors. Their museum (called Farmall-Land) became a favorite tourist destination in Iowa. (It’s gone now).

Anyone who has been involved in a museum knows they are not profitable enterprises, nor are they good hobbies. Jerry’s motive was simple: he just wanted to share his collection with others.

Ron, a Nebraska farm boy and my friend for many years, has a green collection of 15 tractors. He flew for an airline and also farmed. Through the years he has kept his tractors instead of trading them in. Now retired, he enjoys restoring them with no intention of using them in the field or selling any. He occasionally buys one at auctions and feels it is a good way to spend retirement days working on them.

I asked another friend with a dozen collectible tractors why he keeps them. He has no plans to add to the collection, but neither does he plan to collect more. His answer? “Some of them were dad’s. Every time I walk around them and crawl up on one, I think of him. He’s been gone a long time but when I’m near these tractors he’s close by.”

A huge gathering of collectors and owners have traveled to Mackinac City and St. Ignace, Mich., for the last 15 years. A carefully planned event arranges for 1,500 tractors to drive across the five-mile-long Mackinac Bridge. 

The first 1,500 that send in registrations are entered for the drive, providing their tractors are at least 40 years old and meet other requirements. This event has grown since its first crossing in 2008. Six hundred fourteen tractors participated the first year.

Tractor collections exist throughout the world. I received an interesting letter from a collector near Devizes, a small town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. His collection is so diverse that I’ll quote directly from his letter:

“I have been a long-time IH enthusiast and collector. My collection includes T20, 10-20, an A, H, M, TD6, B250, 414, 434, 248 (industrial), 5288, 2525C forklift, type M stationary hay press, gas Scout 2, turbo diesel Scout 2.”

It seems to me that the reasons individuals collect tractors are many and varied, but the strongest is to own a link to the past. Memories of the farm as a kid come up often. Ownership of the same or similar model tractor that they first drove is a motive heard a lot.

As said many times, farming is not a business, it’s a way of life. We may move on to other occupations, but memories of a farm background and first tractor experience remain with many of us forever. (I am not a collector, but those memories certainly stay alive with me).

Paul Wallem was raised on an Illinois dairy farm. He spent 13 years with corporate IH in domestic and foreign assignments. He resigned to own and operate two IH dealerships. He is the author of THE BREAKUP of IH and SUCCESSES & INDUSTRY FIRSTS of IH. See all his books on www.PaulWallem.com. Send your email comments about this column to pwallem@aol.com.