Central Massachusetts

By Staff
Published on March 1, 1984
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Photos by Phillip Whitney

Undaunted by the typically indecisive New England weather,
members of the Central Massachusetts Steam, Gas and Machinery
Association held their seventh annual meet Saturday and Sunday,
June 25 & 26, 1983.

In the same spirit of camaraderie that first joined them
together, club members gathered the Friday evening before the meet
to put the finishing touches on the Orange Airport field. The show
itself, which combines an air show, antique car exhibition, flea
market and crafts display, has grown tremendously. In anticipation
of another large crowd, last minute preparations were made.

Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny. Before too long, it
was dark and threatening. Soon after, gusty winds had separated the
early exhibitors from their awnings. By ten o’clock however,
the weather had settled down, and the field began to fill with
exhibitors.

Prominent among the exhibitors, and an annual attraction, was
Bruce Dexter’s Chase shingle mill which always attracts a
crowd. With his steam boiler, Ed Bergquist, club treasurer, hosted
the steam table and provide a place for many exhibitors to
demonstrate their latest steam models and collections of old steam
engines. Visitors were also treated to a demonstration of drag
sawing by Walter Kritemyer of Connecticut who, after a rough start,
(seems the club supplied an oak log that must have been a tree
house judging by the nails) settled on the good end and produced
fine round slabs for two days.

Representatives from the Owls Head Museum of Maine were on hand
with a fine display of antique machinery featuring a restored steam
driven pump. Chet Petrowsky, club member, displayed his recently
restored 8 HP Sturtervante steam engine. Nellie Bates, widow of
Harry Bates, displayed her husband’s fine collection of antique
woodworking tools and demonstrated their respective purposes. One
of the largest exhibits was Raymond Chapdelaine’s collection of
Witte ‘Headless’ gas engine. The collection runs from two
to twenty horsepower and all the engines are transported on finely
restored antique GMC trucks. New this year was a crosscut sawing
contest which proved to be a big attraction to young and old
alike.

The Orange Senior Citizens, as well as other local non-profit
organizations provided food for sale, and on Saturday evening
entertainment was provided by ‘The No Name Band’ for those
guests and exhibitors remaining overnight.

With 20,000 visitors viewing 486 antique engines, numerous
aircraft and antique cars, the show definitely lived up to its
reputation as one of the best. It was a time for exhibitors to swap
stories, engines and equipment. It was a time for spectators to
reminisce about the kind of performance particular engines gave
back on the farm. A good time was had by all and plans are being
made for June 23 and 24, 1984.

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