![Lloyd Belden's 50 HP Case. Ted Knack is perched on the big wheel [engineer]. These pictures were taken at the 5th Annual Eagan Threshing bee September of 1973 by Rudy Clemmensen, 833 Grand Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota 55105. Courtesy of John T. Hays, 151](https://ogden_images.s3.amazonaws.com/www.farmcollector.com/images/1974/05/03165157/IMA_V29_I3_May_1974_08-3.jpg)
511 Iglehart St. St. Paul , Minn. 55104
This annual event was held September 15th and 16th, 1973, on the
George H. Ohmann, Jr. farm as it has been for the last four
years.
The site of the show is seven and one-half miles south of the
Mendota bridge, just out of St. Paul, or five and one-half miles
This show is the result of the cooperation of George H. Ohman,
Sr. who operates a farm adjoining the show location and his son,
George H. Ohman, Jr. They are assisted by Mrs. George H. Ohman,
Jr., who is secretary.
When show time comes, it is threshing time at the Ohmann farm.
Grain grown has been harvested and stacked usually in two
‘settings’ of at least four stacks in each location. The
settings are located far enough apart so that two threshing outfits
can operate at the same time.
Lloyd Belden of St. Paul Park brought two of his engines to the
show. One was the 50 H.P. Case he has used there other years, and
the other was a 65 H.P. Case, purchased last February. With Mr.
Belden were his two engineers, Gene Roggeman of Minneapolis and Ted
Knack of St. Paul Park.
Mr. Roggeman told me they did a lot of work on the 65 H.P. Case.
It carries 150 pounds of steam and runs like new. They gave it a
beautiful paint job.
When I saw the show on Sunday, September 16, this engine was in
the belt running Ohman’s 36 inch Minneapolis separator with
wing feeder.
In another four-stack setting of oats, Mr. Ohman, Sr. threshed
with his 30-60 Aultman and Taylor gas tractor which is his pride
and joy, belted to his 36 x 60 Red River Special with wing
feeder.
Lumber sawing was in progress as usual with George Ohman, Jr.
using his 30 H.P. Minneapolis to operate the saw. Mr. Reuben
Boettcher of Jordan was firing this engine. A shingle mill was
operated by a 10-20 McCormick Deering tractor. Eisner Machacek of
Northfield was there operating his 1/3 scale model of a 1915 65
H.P. Case which he built.
Other activity was tractor plowing in a nearby field with a
22-36 McCormick Deering and other gas tractors. Beside these two
gas tractors, the Ohman collection includes a 17-30 Minneapolis in
top shape with cross mounted motor. An Oliver 99 tractor, a 2
cylinder John Deere, a 39-57 Minneapolis tractor, a F 20 Farmall
and another Farmall with cultivator.
Eight gas engines were on display, one operating a Baker fan.
These engines, as well as the above name gas tractors, are all part
of the George H. Ohman, Jr. collection.
In the antique farm machinery collection, they have, to name a
few of the items, two sulky plows, a hay tedder, a hay rake, along
with other relics of the horse-drawn era. Three grain binders, a
McCormick Deering, a Minnesota and a McCormick are ready to take on
the oat harvest for years to come.
My attention was called to an accumulation of six grain
threshers purchased by George Jr. The collection consists of a
24-inch cylinder Case, a 20 or 22-inch Twin City, a 24-inch Red
River Special, a 24-inch Belle City, a 28-inch McCormick Deering
and a Minneapolis 28-inch cylinder.
In addition to the 36 x 60 Minneapolis and the 36-inch Red River
Special threshers, Mr. Ohman, Sr. has a 22-inch wood constructed
McCormick Deering. These three machines have been in use at the
show in recent years.
I met some of the fellows from other shows who came to the Eagan
show including those from Scott Carver. I renewed acquaintance with
James Stewart of Minnesota City, Minnesota, 55959. Mr. Stewart owns
quite a line of machinery of which he is justly proud. He likes to
visit the shows and recall old times.
I met his neighbor, Lester Maus of Minnesota City. Mr. Maus owns
a 26 H.P. Advance compound engine and a 36-inch Case separator. He
mentioned the date 1891 in connection with these machines.
Mr. Ohman, Sr. told me that he was born on the farm the same
year his father purchased it. It has been his home ever since. He
enjoys carrying on the farm with his son, Marvin. At harvest time,
he rides the binder and does grain stacking. He considers the farm
quite successful, 2000 bushels of oats were threshed in 1973.
George H. Ohman, Jr. beside being employed as a motor engineer
on construction, rents a 136 acre farm where he raised 60 acres of
soybeans and 60 acres of oats in 1973. In his spare time, he is
self-employed repairing heavy motors.
The Eagan show is deserving of much better attendance than they
had in 1973. Let’s hope that 1974 will be better and that the
Twin City people will come out as well as people from other show
areas. The Ohmans will welcome you.
