3203 Norton Road Radnor, Ohio 43066
Earl Scott grew Lip on a farm in the Burnt Pond, Fontanelle Road
area in southwestern Delaware County, deep in the heart of Ohio.
From the beginning of his farming career he has used John Deere
equipment. Like many a collector of antique farming equipment, he
hated to see fine relics from the past sold for scrap, squirreled
away in barns, or rotting in overgrown farm yards. It became his
mission to rescue some of the finest examples. Restoring these
tractors is a hobby Earl enjoys with his son Troy. He takes such
pleasure in acquiring John Deere tractors that he admits, ‘Some
people say we’ve got green blood.’
‘When you get one tractor done you’re proud of it, and
proud of yourself,’ Troy says.
Earl adds, ‘After you get them completely done, it seems
like they get right into your heart or something.’ Could this
be how a true ‘green’ collector gets his first infusion of
that ‘green blood?’
The collecting bug first bit Earl when he bought a 1929 Model A
Ford car and restored it. He and his wife Avalyn (who died in
1986), their daughter Teresa, and Troy rode in many parades in that
car, just for the fun of it. In all the time he has had the car, it
has never given him much mechanical trouble. Recently, at the
wedding of Sam and Janice Foos’s daughter, Earl made several
trips chauffeuring the wedding couple and wedding party from the
house to the meadow where the wedding took place. This thoughtful
act made the day especially pictures que. Mr. Foos was among the
neighbors who helped harvest Earl’s crops after his recent
stroke, which made some of Earl’s days pretty special, too.
Soon after he had restored the car, Earl found a 1929 John Deere
GP tractor in Zanesfield, Ohio. When the GP had been restored, he
used it on his farm to pull a hay baler. Troy was only six years
old when he learned to drive that tractor.
Earl was hooked by then, and whenever he learned of a special
old tractor ‘priced decent,’ he would buy it. He learned to
recognize rare tractors and was happy to run across one. A John
Deere Model DI, with a serial number proving it was the only model
DI manufactured with a wooden cab, is the rarest tractor he has
owned. When be bought it the wooden cab had rotted away. He sold it
to Barry Thomas, who lives in Plain City, Ohio.
Tractor by tractor his collection grew to more than fifty. Some
of his finds were good only for spare parts, but he ferreted out
other choice antiques along the way. These form a unique collection
which he and his family, as well as those lucky enough to see them
on display, continue to enjoy.
He restored his HN in 1987, intensively sanding for hours after
his day’s work was done, then painstakingly painting back its
respectable ‘green’ coat. He took it to the Two-Cylinder
Club’s Expo I in Waterloo, Iowa. Later, when the John Deere
Company, headquartered in Moline, Illinois, needed an HN for a
special display, a Two-Cylinder Club member put them in touch with
Earl, and his HN was displayed at headquarters for nine months.
Earl and his wife Donna attended the John Deere Company’s 150th
anniversary celebration. Those ‘green tractors’ came from
all over the U. S. A., and visitors came from as far away as
England, Australia and New Zealand to witness this special
event.
Earl then exhibited the HN at the Two-Cylinder Club’s Expo
II. The ‘N’ in HN stands for narrow, since the tractor has
narrowly set rear wheels and a single front wheel making it ideal
for cultivating closely-spaced row crops.
Earl and Donna attended the 80th anniversary of the John Deere
Training Center based in Columbus, Ohio. This is where mechanics
from the central Ohio area come for training in the repair of John
Deere equipment. Earl has a large collection of John Deere
memorabilia, and eagerly adds to it at every opportunity. He and
Donna noticed the cardboard window signs in yellow or green with a
special 80th anniversary logo printed on them; the signs assigned
the buses for the use of either show patrons or exhibitors and
dealers. By the end of the exhibition the signs were disappearing
fast, and Earl wanted one. Ordinarily a quiet man, he
uncharacteristically took off after one bus which still boasted a
sign in its window. Others had tried for it, but the robust woman
driver had fended off all comers. Earl tried some fast talk and
bartering, to the cheers of bus passengers and bystanders alike.
Finally he made an offer she couldn’t refuse: clasping his sign
and his pants, he handed over his John Deere suspenders!
Earl s collection also includes a 1937 John Deere AW (only 125
of these were manufactured), the 1940 HN, of which 1007 came off
the line, and a 1950 John Deere BN High Clearance tractor. The BN
has a rear axle measurement of 114 inches and stands three inches
taller than the standard B. It was used to cultivate sugar beets.
He has a John Deere GN with a single front wheel and a rear axle
measuring 104 inches. There is a formidable 1928 or 79 Wallis, a
1931 six-cylinder Rumely Oil Pull, and a 1926 20-35 Rumely with a
17-gallon oil cooling system. He says there is no ‘winter
freeze-up’ with this tractor!
His collection includes a 1953 red Cock shutt 50, built at
Brantford, Ontario, Canada. Other Cock shutt tractors, painted
orange, were made under the Co-Op brand name and were sold in this
country by Farm Bureau.
His Global prototype was made in 1950. Only eight were
constructed, and three are known to exist today. These tractors had
consecutive serial numbers, and Earl’s bears the middle number.
Mr. Klingel and Howard Barry, both of Marion County, own the other
two. These tractors were constructed upstairs in a building owned
by the Huber Manufacturing Company in Marion, Ohio, by a company
planning to market them all over the world. Earl says it resembles
an old Huber grader. While a shortened Huber Maintainer frame was
used for this project, no Huber tractors were manufactured after
the second world war. The story goes that, about the time
production was to begin, one of the partners was shot dead in a bar
in Springfield, Ohio, bringing to an end this scrap of antique
tractor history.
Altogether Earl has restored more than fifteen tractors. He has
ordered new fenders for his latest project, a John Deere 620
orchard tractor. A scale model of this tractor is a highly prized
possession.
He bought a John Deere LA for his wife, Donna, but her real
favorite is the 1919 Titan. It is currently the oldest tractor in
his collection, and was built mostly of cast iron, weighing in at
about 6,000 pounds. When anyone asks if it is for sale, he refers
them to his wife, and she says flatly, ‘No!’
Earl joined the Two-Cylinder Club in 1983 and his membership
card carries the number # 111. He has taken tractors to all three
of their meets. Earl helped to organize the Marion County Steam and
Gas Engine Society in 1978, and is a charter member. He is
currently president of this group. The Society’s 1993 feature
is John Deere, which will be commemorated with a limited edition
toy truck bank. All John Deere collectors are invited to attend and
exhibit at the Society’s 16th annual Steam and Gas Show which
will be held at the Marion County Fairground in Marion, Ohio, June
17, 18, 19 and 20 (Father’s Day). Admission is still just
$2.00, and the 8th annual Henry Hardin Memorial Vintage and Classic
Motorcycle Show, an integral part of the show consisting of as many
as one hundred exhibits, is free. These two cooperative shows
represent the greatest entertainment bar-gain of the summer.
The show also features antique tractor pulls, a national
association kiddie pedal pull, fiddler’s contest, and a large
flea market. This will be their second annual craft show with lots
of demonstrations and vendors in costumes of the 1800s.
For information contact: Earl Scott (513) 642-0574, or Don
Willson (614) 482-2506, or send a self-addressed stamped business
size envelope to: In-formation, 3203 Norton Road, Radnor, Ohio
43066.