Because things are the way they are, things
will not stay the way they are.
– Bertold Brecht
Truer words never spoken. Case in point: This
issue of Farm Collector concludes a four-year romp through
these pages by freelance writer Oscar H. Will III. Hank began his
about an International Harvester Farmall 544 Hydro. This issue
contains his final regular contribution to the magazine: a profile
on Nevada collector Alvin Barkl.
In between, Hank enthusiastically delved into everything from
horse-drawn implements to vintage construction equipment, Briggs
& Stratton engines to wire fence makers, the evolution of the
row crop tractor to the history of hemp cultivation in America.
Readers enjoyed his stellar reporting, writing and photography, and
as an editor, I was as happy as a pig in clover. Then, Hank got an
offer he couldn’t refuse, and he is now working as the editor of
Farm Collector’s sister publication, Grit
magazine.
The old order changeth, yielding place
to new … – Alfred, Lord Tennyson
At about the same time I was considering Hank’s imminent
departure from these pages I received a query from a writer in the
U.K. “I’d like to give your readers an insight into what country
life is like in this little Welsh hamlet, and introduce some of the
fascinating people (and tractors!) I meet at shows, ploughing
matches and in my everyday life,” wrote Josephine Roberts. Reading
Jo’s essays, I was intrigued by a fresh perspective on the hobby.
And so it is that with this issue, we welcome her to these pages on
a quarterly basis.
Time is a dressmaker specializing in alterations.
– Faith Baldwin
We never tire of tinkering with Farm Collector. Last
issue we expanded the What Is It department to include enlarged
views of patent drawings. This gives you a better look at the
remarkable mechanisms of various tools and devices. We’re also
planning a new department beginning next month featuring great
finds: Stay tuned!
Change is inevitable … except from
a vending machine. – Robert C.
Gallagher
We may tweak the looks; we watch people come and go. But at the
heart of it all, Farm Collector endures. We’re still
fascinated by old farm machinery and the people who enjoy,
appreciate, show, preserve, collect and restore it. And that, dear
reader, will stay exactly the same!
Leslie McManus, Editor
lmcmanus@ogdenpubs.com
