I am a collector and restorer of antique horse-drawn farm machinery. I recently restored a 1912 corn surface cultivator manufactured by J.D. Tower & Sons Co., Mendota, Illinois (see photos). During the restoration, I needed information about original paint colors for the machine. I wrote a letter to the editor of Farm Collector, asking for information on factory paint colors. The letter appeared in the July 2016 issue.
I am pleased to report I received many letters and phone calls from Farm Collector readers. I would like to thank the following who supplied me with much-needed information: Nic Papenburg, Shipshewana, Indiana; Don Copa, Little Falls, Minnesota; Robert (Butch) Hansen Jr., a Duluth, Minnesota machinist, who made the many missing parts; and others who helped on this project.
One of my next projects will be another early horse-drawn cultivator, an Adams made by Marseilles Mfg. Co., Marseilles, Illinois. This machine has been outside for more than 100 years and I will need the original paint colors on it also. If anyone has that information, please call or write to me.
Wesley Ahlberg, 5253 Lavaque Jct. Rd., Hermantown, MN 55811;
(218) 591-6721
Send letters to: Farm Collector Editorial, 1503 SW 42nd St., Topeka, KS 66609; FAX: (785) 274-4385; email: editor@farmcollector.com; online at: www.farmcollector.com
