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The real treasure, Bob says, is when he's able to visit with someone who actually worked on steam engines years ago.
"Every once in a while, we run into somebody knowledgeable about steam, who had hands-on experience with it," he says. "But there aren't many of those guys left, the ones who ran steam and made a living with it. A lot of engines are on third generation ownership within a family. And back then, most of the time, it was easier for the grandfather to fix something than to teach somebody else how to do it. Lots of times, the son was only taught how to fire the engine and keep water in it. A lot of that knowledge was not passed on, just because it wasn't convenient."
Decades later, a new base of knowledge is growing at a shop on a back road in Indiana.
Full Steam Ahead:
Hobby Back on the Upswing, Indiana Restorer Says
Collector interest in steam engines is on the upswing, Bob Gold says.
"At Rushville (Ind.) five years ago, there were maybe 25 steam engines," he says. "Two years ago, at the 50th annual show, we wanted to have 50 engines; 54 came. Last year, the number was in the forties. Steam is going strong in this area, and younger people are getting involved. It just goes in cycles.
" Indiana has a strong heritage in steam engines.
"At one time, there were 13 companies in Indiana making steam engines," says Brian Vaughn. "There was Gaar, Reeves, Meinrad Rumely, Advance Rumely, and a bunch of smaller regional companies. There were gobs of them in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois: this was the heart of steam country."
Clubs put a high priority on preservation of that heritage.
"In this part of the country, shows pay people to haul their steam engines in," Bob says.