Wheel Horse Garden Tractor: The Horse of a Different Color
Wheel Horse Collectors Club meets annually to celebrate the unique garden tractor
Oscar H. Will III
January 2006
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On parade at the South Mountain Fairgrounds.
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Just as domestication of the four-legged horse revolutionized the development of ancient civilizations, Cecil and Elmer Pond’s Wheel Horse tractors revolutionized how post-World War II America cared for its suburban lawns and gardens.
From a small, neighborhood garage in South Bend, Ind., the father-and-son team developed an accessible, innovative, purpose-built, four-wheel tractor that really stood out, and whose descendants are still produced today.
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This horse of a different color not only spurred generations of garden tractor designers of virtually all makes, but also captured the fancy of a group of loyalists who now meet once a year in Pennsylvania to celebrate the little red horses.
Members of the Wheel Horse Collectors Club (WHCC) met at the South Mountain Fairgrounds west of Arendtsville, Pa., in June for their seventh annual all-Wheel Horse show. “It was our largest turnout ever,” says founding president Don Kane. “We started with about 40 tractors in 1999 and had about 500 in attendance this year.” The club boasts more than 500 members from the United States, Canada and Great Britain, and the two-day show attracts hundreds of spectators and soon-to-be Wheel Horse enthusiasts.
Just horsing around
The WHCC was formed by a group of enthusiasts who made connections via the Internet. “My son Jeff put together a website devoted to Wheel Horse tractors as part of his senior project,” Don explains proudly. “Many of us (who visited the site) then became friends and decided to have a little show in 1999.” Shortly after, the friends incorporated as the WHCC.
Chris Sutton traveled to the ’05 show from Brighton, Sussex, in the U.K., and though he didn’t haul a tractor with him this year, doing so in the future isn’t out of the question. “I am a Wheel Horse fanatic, really,” Chris explains with a wink. “I even have some U.K.-unique stuff that was built at the plant in Belgium.”
Dan Messinger, East Berlin, Pa., discovered that restoring Wheel Horses was a great way to stay connected to his son Dustin when he hit his early teens. “The tractors gave us a way to communicate,” Dan says. “And the time we spent together was quality time.” Sixteen years later, Dustin is grown and on his own, but the father-and-son team still mess around with Wheel Horse tractors. A beautifully restored Model 401 with 32-inch front-mounted sickle bar mower really made their display shine at South Mountain.
Bruce Lauer, Canton, Ohio, and son Anthony have been collecting Wheel Horse equipment for 11 years. “We brought our 1963 Model 603 because it was a rare transitional model,” Bruce explains as he points out some of the tractor’s unique features. “This was an entry-level tractor pieced together with remaining parts from older models.” Among the machine’s unusual characteristics is the sector-shaped steering wheel, and older style hood.
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