A wide variety of corn equipment and memorabilia was displayed at the Corn Items Collectors Association’s annual gathering in September. Held at Argyle State Park near Colchester, Ill., the event is held in conjunction with the Argyle Gas and Engine Show.
About two dozen collectors (the 20-year-old group has about 300 members) set up displays; most brought extra items to swap.
Items displayed included memorabilia from various seed corn companies: caps, memo books, pens and pencils, old cloth seed corn sacks, seed corn signs and patches. Implements such as hand-operated and horse-drawn planters, shellers and dryers were popular, as were planter plates, lids and markers; husking hooks and pegs.
Regional meets were held throughout the season at Davis Junction, Ill., in April West Burlington, Iowa, June; Portland, Ind., August; Jacksonville, Ill., September.
 A joint meeting was held in November with members of the Missouri Valley Wrench Club.
For more information on the Corn Items Collectors Association visit their website at www.cornitems.org.
