Marysville, Ohio 43040
It was in the summer of 1915 and the farmers of the west side of
Pairs Township and the east side of Allen Township, Union County,
Ohio were confronted with a serious problem. The grain crops were
good and try in every way they could, the farmers were unable to
engage the services of any of the regular custom threshermen.
So ten of these farmers drove in two cars to Marion, Ohio to
visit the main office and plant of the Huber Mfg. Co. to see what
they might have on hand in the way of threshing equipment. They had
several separators and one 16-horse Huber Engine all new. Completed
and ready to be shipped. Well, these farmers agreed to form a
company and purchase a new Huber Outfit, which they did. 16 horse
engine No. 11175 and a 28 x 48 separator. The next day the Huber
Co. loaded this outfit on the train and shipped it to Pottersburgh,
Ohio. Also included was a Huber tank-wagon equipped with a Myers
hand pump and twenty feet of suction hose.
When the outfit arrived, Mr. Claypool, the local representative
of the Huber Company was there and helped the men unload it. None
of these farmers had had any experiences with a steam engine and so
they hired an engineer and a separator man-now they were in
business. With only a few minor mishaps, they got along fine and
with a little bit over two seasons’ use they paid all operating
expenses and had the outfit completely paid for. P.S. Mr. Amrine
was the former Secretary-manager of the Allen-Paris Threshing Co.,
Union County, Ohio.
THEN AND NOW
Courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. Fred J. Steck, 12445 Hack Rd., R. 1,
Reese, Michigan 48757
A few years ago, after much letter writing, trying to locate a
steam locomotive for sale, we came across this 1920 Baldwin 2-6-2
Wood burner in the yard of the Mobile River Saw Mill Company at Mt.
Vernon, Alabama. The next job was how to get it home.
Checking with the several railroads involved, we ended up having
it towed to Mobile, Alabama, and loaded on two flatcars and sent on
its way home on July 11, 1963. It arrived in our town of Reese on
July 24th. Having contacted several truckers to haul it to our
farm, 1 miles from Reese, we got one to do the job in three days.
It was something to see. Once in our yard the engine and tender
were unloaded on two tracks we had laid.
After much hard work, cleaning, sandblasting and making several
new parts and just about taking everything apart and painting it
all three coats of paint, the engine and tender should be all done
by early summer. Taking almost four years of spare time, lots of
weekends of hard work and people stopping in every now and then and
asking all kinds of questions, the engine is expected to be as good
as new. Its new home will be Lake City, Michigan. We expect to
lease it to the Cadillac and Lake City R. Y. for their tourist
line, which operates from the end of May to the end of September
for tourists, and also hauls freight all year with steam power.
