Pioneer Power Antique Tractor Show
Area
tractor collectors display
antiques machines at Carrollton
Adcock
will display his has collected
33 tractors since the 1950s
By
Helen E. McKinney
Contributing Writer
CARROLLTON, Ky. (May 2008) – For those who grew
up on a farm, there’s a certain nostalgia about old tractors. For
those who missed out on this chance, antique tractor shows provide a
glimpse of a simpler rural lifestyle where these old irons were once
king.
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Photo
by Randal Miles Carroll
County, Ky., native Lawson |
Lawson Adcock is one of those individuals who “enjoy
old tractors because I grew up with them.” Adcock, 74, still has
the tractor he grew up on, a 1938 C Case. His father bought it when
it was only a few years old.
“I’ve always had old tractors,” said Adcock. “I
just didn’t get rid of them when I updated them with newer ones.”
Tractor collectors like Adcock will be participating in the sixth annual
Antique Tractor Show in Carrollton on May 9-11. From 9 a.m. until dark,
the Pioneer Power Club will be displaying167 tractors with plaques awarded
to winning tractors.
Local crafters will be on hand, a petting zoo will be set up for children,
and working demonstrations of a rock crusher, hay baler and more antique
engines can be seen throughout the weekend. The Antique Tractor Show
will be set up beside Kentucky Motors Inc. on Highland Avenue.
This show is for all ages, said event chair and Pioneer Power Club President
Debbie Miles. The club has about 30 members, many of whom are women
and children.
The show has grown steadily since its beginning in 2002. Miles said
people are coming from as far away as northern Indiana to participate
this year.
Miles’ father-in-law, Roy Miles, was a founding member of the Pioneer
Power Club. For the second consecutive year, the club will award a memorial
scholarship in his name to one high school senior from the surrounding
counties.
Adcock, a Carroll County native, said the founding members formed the
club so they could “share our toys.” Adcock has collected
33 tractors since the 1950s. He said the tractors really belong to his
wife, Marcella. He would often buy them for her for special occasions,
such as their 50th wedding anniversary.
The oldest tractor he owns is a 1919 728 Case Cross Motor. He purchased
it at an auction in New York State and has driven to Wisconsin, Pennsylvania,
Ohio and Indiana to pick up tractors.
Mostly in a junk state when he buys them, Adcock may spend a couple
of months restoring them on his own. He owns all brands and will have
a good selection at the show, including other equipment such as a 1927
hay baler.
Another special antique iron he owns is a 1937 CC Case that had once
belonged to his “Uncle Boone.” His uncle had purchased the
tractor when it was new from Dallas Taylor’s dealership in Prestonsville.
The day his uncle went to trade in his old one for the new one, he left
his house with the old one while the dealer left his business with the
new one, meeting in the middle to exchange tractors.
The widespread appeal of antique tractor shows seems to be gaining in
popularity, said Adcock.
“The Wall Street Journal even wrote an article on tractor collecting.”
Adcock had seven tractors in last year’s show and hopes to add
a few to that number for this year.
For Gene Crady, founding member of the Antique Iron Club in Oldham County,
the Antique Tractor Show in Carrollton is “a wonderful show. We
were invited to participate and would very much like to be a part of
it.”
Several members of the Antique Iron Club have participated on an individual
basis in the past, and Crady said he hopes the club can pull together
to have about eight tractors in this show.
Crady said he likes the atmosphere of camaraderie with neighbors and
friends who accompany such local shows. “You can see old friends
and make new ones.”
Adcock summed it all up by adding, “It’s good for the next
generation to see what we farmed with.”
• For more information about the Antique Tractor Show, contact Debbie Miles at (502) 347-9365 or (502) 558-8684.