I enjoy the many fine articles about rare collectibles in Farm Collector. I especially enjoyed the article on the hand corn sheller in the May 2017 issue of Farm Collector. I spent much time as a young child shelling corn for the chickens on my father’s 160-acre farm.
Recently I acquired a John Deere Model No. 1B. On a trip to Minnesota’s North Shore Drive, we stopped at an architectural antique shop in Two Harbors. I was surprised to find an old wooden corn sheller tucked away in one corner. I asked the owner about it and he did not know any history about it or really care. That sheller was miles away from corn country and intrigued me so much that, a month later, I called the store, found that they still had it, and last weekend we drove 275 miles back there and bought it.
As the photo shows, all the joints in the wood framing were mortise and tenon. All joints were fastened with wood dowels. The lettering on the front reads: Manufactured for George Worthington & Co., Cleveland, Ohio. Lettering on the cob outlet reads No. 63; on the front casing, No. 69 and on the back casing, No. 39.
I called Jake Rens in Orange City, Iowa, recently and we discussed the sheller but he could not identify it either. I am wondering if any Farm Collector readers could identify the manufacturer, history and age of this sheller. An internet search turned up nothing. It would really ice the cake if I could find a crank for it.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
Bob Christensen, c/o The Gallery on 1st,
403 North 1st St., Montevideo, MN 56265;
(320) 269-5518 (work); (320) 226-1020 (cell);
email: galleryon1stmontevideo@hotmail.com.
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