A steam powered Behemoth

Imagine a machine that weighs several tons and belches sparks and smoke into the air. Imagine something with wheels taller than an average man and capable of traveling under its own power. Now imagine this machine is controlled by One man. It's not a train, not a locomotive. It's a steam powered farm tractor and at a recent farm show I had the incredible good fortune to see one of these giants in action.

Built in 1920 and owned by Neil Lundgren of LaMoile, this relic of days gone by was once as common a sight as the ubiquitous John Deere is today. Back before the advent of gasoline powered tractors the steam tractor played a vital role in the farms of our area.  This beautiful example was manufactured by the Port Huron Engine and Thresher co.

Port Huron Engine & Thresher started out life as the Upton Manufacturing co. in 1873 in Battle creek, MI but moved operations to Port Huron in 1884 with the name being changed to its title in 1890.   At the time it was impractical for every farmer to own a tractor. What happened was one man or a group of men would buy a tractor and then travel from farm to farm during harvesting season, the farmers paying them for the use of the tractor.  It wasn't just tractors that were sold though. Steam powered road graders, and portable sawmills were also built. In addition various farming implements, corn sheller's & huskers,  threshers, road wagons, were built to be used in conjunction with the main unit.

In the example I saw that day a large leather belt was run from the thresher to a huge flywheel on the tractor, this serving as a power take off. The tractor pulled the belt taut and then used the power of Steam to operate the thresher, saving the average farmer many back breaking hours of threshing by hand.

While a real time saver, they only had a brief run of fifty years or so before the availability of  cheap gasoline as well as the dropping prices of smaller tractors made it possible for each farm to have its own tractor. While now considered obsolete, these old survivors still hearken back to a day when Steam was King and we were glad to have them.

A field of memories

On a recent outing with Tom Anderson I visited the antique tractor show in Ohio, IL.  There were tractors and farm equipment of all shapes and sizes, little 'hit-n-miss' engines, antique cars and more.  We are So Lucky here in our home state that there is so much to do and see in the summer time and if you ever find yourself bored on a weekend all you have to do is jump in the car and drive!

Bring lots of quarters

On a recent road trip down to Atlanta, IL. I came across the Atlanta Arcade Museum.  Located at the corner of Arch and Race streets this building is crammed full of vintage, restored arcade games from the 1930's thru the 1970's.  These are not just static displays however.  Every one of these games has been fully restored to working condition and are available to play.

Shoot'em up games, holographic games, actions games, you name it and you can probably find it here. The admission to get in is....Nothing. That's right, it's Free to get in and play these fabulous examples from the cherished days of yesteryear.  There's a table of souvenirs that you can purchase to help out and I strongly urge you to do so.

In addition to the museum there's a giant statue of Paul Bunyan across the street holding an equally large hot dog. The arcade museum adjoins another museum which houses relics of Atlanta's past. Next to That is the Palm Grill cafe, a restaurant inside the restored Greyhound bus terminal and at the end of the block is yet another museum which has been visited by visitors from over two dozen countries.

So if you feel a need to get out for the day, take the family down to Atlanta on old Route 66. The arcade museum is open Monday-Saturday from 9-4. The other museums as well, the Palm Grill is closed on Tuesdays.  So jump in the car and go have an Adventure. You won't be disappointed you did.