613 8th Avenue Charles City, Iowa 50616
We had a wonderful show this year; the weather was good for all three days. We got the stuff all put away, and we had a swap meet the last weekend in September. We had a record attendance this year, approximately three hundred more than ever before.
We featured John Deeres this year. We had the all wheel drive from Sycamore, Illinois this year; a lot of people looked at it-it was a real attraction. Built in 1917, it was a four cylinder tractor that drives from all three wheels. It made a good show piece. We drove it in the parade each day and put in the shed at night. Two Cylinder Club was here, with a good exhibit.
New this year was a combine by International Harvester, one of the first self-propelled they made. It was the second in a series, I think. It was a 1949 or 1950. It cut oats last year and cut oats again this year.
There were lots of other tractors there, such as Oliver, Hart Parr, International, and Silver King. You name it, we had it. We also had Allis Chalmers there and a Cletrac.
Our big steam engine is in the shed, a cross compound. It pulls from two cylinders, also a good exhibit. We invited people to come to see it. It’s really worth their time, as we believe it is the only one like it in the world.
Another exhibit is a three cylinder Fairbanks Morse diesel. We are getting it fixed up now so it really runs nice. It is started first with another tractor; after that they have an air tank to start it. It is something to see them start it-they start it a half-hour ahead of time, and warm it up with blow torches. We are teaching a young fellow how to run it; hope he keeps it going for us.
We have other big engines there. We have the Hungerfords there, and one that runs on LP gas. He starts it with a power-take off. When he gets it running, it runs good. They have the old Lennox there and it’s quite a good show piece. It’s a big engine, 15 HP. The other engine is a 22?, a natural gas engine, he runs it on LP.
Our oat crop didn’t amount to much, it was so wet. Drowned it out. Quack grass and other grasses grew; we sprayed quack grass early, which should kill it for several years. We had plenty to thresh, but there weren’t many oats in it.
Well the com shredder runs, cuts it the fall before, and puts it in his barn, brings it down to the show and shreds it there.
My boys have their own corn sheller there and pull it with an eight horse Waterloo Boy. I tell them they are back where their grandfather used to be-he shelled corn with a six horse engine.
We have the engines in a kind of close area. They are on the ground or else on trailers; there is no room for pickups in this area, so all of the engines are easy to see. There are two or three hundred of them.
Our little saw mill is pulled by a half scale 40 horse Avery, owned by Roger Burns from Racine, Minnesota. He comes down every year. It is a good exhibit.
Then we have the big saw mill. It is pulled with the big steam engines. It is quite an attraction.
All in all we have a good show, we have a parade and we have a good time at the parade. On Sunday, it was Connie and Dennis Aissens’ anniversary. We gave them a plant this year.
If anyone wants to see a video of the show, write to Cedar Valley Engine Show, we’ll send them one to view. It is too much work to copy them for you to keep them, but they can watch it, and play it for their neighbors, and then they will all want to come next year. So if you want to to view it, paying postage both ways is all that it will cost you.
Our exhibits were excellent this year. I don’t know what to talk about. The Titan was quite an exhibit and as tractors go, it is new. We have run more hours on it than the guy who had it before. It is one of the last ones. I am glad that we have it and hope people enjoy it.
It is nice to see these young folks who have the time and money to put into fixing up their steam engines. They use them by putting them on the sawmill and threshing machine.
Paul Squires, almost 80 years old, still wants to run them, he says, though after his hip and knees were operated on it is quite a job for him to get around. He is tall, thin and goes like a ‘house afire,’ but he sees that everything gets done.
Paul started running them when he was young and sees that everything that needs to be done gets done. He is doing more than he should do. We must be thankful for him and help him all we can.
I’m 76 and have had both knees operated on. I can get around pretty good. They are a little touchy, and the boys know it and help me out, more power to them.
Our show will be September 5, 6, 7, 1992. Come and see us and see what you think of it.
