RANTOUL, Ill. – The Half Century of Progress was Aug. 21-24 at the former Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul. This all-volunteer event is the largest vintage farm show in the U.S. and is always the week before the Farm Progress Show. The spotlight for this year’s theme was Feeling the Earth Move, which was a perfect lead into the 100 Years of Caterpillar.

Mike Timmons said about planning this big Caterpillar event, “A year and a half ago we started to reach out to Facebook friends in clubs, equipment companies and shows.”

This was a group effort. Timmons’ company is Tempered Tracks, and he was assisted by Heartland Earthmovers, and two friends, Davil Tallon and Clayton Smith, along with collectors that gathered to celebrate this century event.

The Caterpillar Co. was formed in 1925 with the merger of the Holt Manufacturing Co. and the C.L. Best Tractor Co. “Best and Holt merged,” Timmons shared, “but Benjamin Holt passed before it happened.”

Timmons said, “Our goal was to have 100 different CAT pieces.” They achieved this and more. “We had 115 CAT’s and 15 other brands along with four models.”

Each Half Century of Progress show, they highlight tractors from 50 years ago. This year they highlighted tractors from 1975. The show is a combination of static displays with fieldwork with vintage equipment. The show was kicked off with the tractor drive headed up by famed broadcaster Max Armstrong. More than 100 tractors took part. Before the show started each day, it opened with the Star-Spangled Banner, and the raising of the Big Flag. Most evenings ended with a tractor pull.

At the 2023 Half Century show, an Allis Chalmers group celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Allis Chalmers D21’s. It was such a success that this year at the show Brad Twiss and Kristin Gall put their efforts and energies into bringing what might be a record of 263 1206 tractors to the 2025 Half Century show. They were celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Farmall 1206 model.

Friends of Green, that help support the Half Century of Progress as well as Historic Days at Penfield, Ill., organized the 60th anniversary of the John Deere 4020 tractors. Ed Winkleman and Chris Elliott were the organizers for the 4020 Gathering. “The 4020 was probably the most popular tractor John Deere ever built in the New Generation,” Winkleman shared. The 4020 came in gas, diesel, LP, and powershift.

“Deere needed to refine things,” Elliott said. “That is a unique thing from Deere. They refine their products.”

“As of Friday, of the show, we had 113 4020’s with a 4020 hi crop from Florida, 4020’s from Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and on and on. It seemed like collectors were from everywhere,” Winkleman added.

Besides the anniversary tractors, this was the first time at the Half Century of Progress that Conversion Tractors and Doodlebugs were featured at the Half Century show. The idea came about when Mark Dozier and Keith Ladage were at Historic Days in Penfield, Ill., in 2024. Both loved the farmer ingenuity of the tractors.

“Conversion tractors and doodlebugs showcase farmer’s creativity, and each piece is different. All the ones that came to our exhibit, even if they were a conversion tractor that used the same kit, were unique,” Dozier said. “Most had a single transmission, and they were mostly converted from Ford Model A’s and T’s.”

Doodlebugs are cars with items added that could make them work like a tractor, depending on what they had on hand. Each one of these is completely its own creation. In its day, the doodlebug, and the conversion tractors were the poor man’s tractor. Collectors brought displays from Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. Dozier said he is interested in these tractors “because they caught a small time in agricultural history when people made do with what they had. They are mostly pre-WWII. If you had money, you made the conversion, if not, you did it yourself with what you had.”

The Half Century is always a chance to see new and unique items. Josh Salm, of Kiel, Wis., was at the Half Century of Progress, with his half scale model 8020 John Deere tractor.

Heritage Iron magazine, owned by Sherry Schaefer, has been a premier sponsor of the Half Century of Progress almost since the beginning. Schaefer publishes two bi-monthly magazines under her publishing company, 3-Point Ink in Greenville, Ill. Both are antique tractor magazines, Heritage Iron, the premier magazine for Muscle tractor enthusiasts, and Oliver Heritage for those that love the Oliver brand. She also produces other books and merchandise as well.  On her website she shares, “We know tractors are not just pieces of machinery, but a part of families and their heritage, and we keep that in mind with every publication we put our name on.”

At the Half Century show, Heritage Iron had a very special tent. “This year Heritage Iron features number ones. We have eight number one’s, or one of ones.” These muscle beauties were the first Allis-Chalmers D21, first Farmall 806 diesel, first Allis-Chalmer 210, first Allis-Chalmers 8070, first Allis-Chalmers 4WD 220, an Oliver prototype, first Case prototype 2296, and one homebuilt tractor.

The Oliver prototype, Schaefer discovered. “I found this two years ago at a show in Oakley, Mich.”

Some agricultural celebrities were at the show, like Max Armstrong, and one young YouTuber, Rylan Maney, from Evart, Mich. This young entrepreneur is 13 years old and has started his own Old Iron Farm Toys YouTube channel. He also writes a column for the children’s farm magazine, Little Green. “I have awa`ys liked toys since I was little,” Rylan said. “I have been collecting since I was 7. I like to collect all brands, but focus on Ford, and John Deere.”

Not only does he like all brands, but he also likes all models as well. “I collect 1/16th, 1/32nd, but mostly 1/64th scale, with a few oddball scales.”

Almost everyone that attended the Half Century of Progress could add in something they saw, or someone they met. This event brings people from all over the U.S. and around the world to celebrate vintage agriculture.