Alvordton, Ohio
Secretary-treasurer of THE NATIONAL THRESHERS ASSOCIATION,
INC.
Long-time readers of the Iron Men Album will perhaps remember
‘The Story of the Big Avery 40’ which I wrote for the
July-August issue in 1953. As they will recall, I began by saying
giant steam traction engine hidden in the sand hills of Nebraska.
The story told of the exciting discovery of the engine, hidden by
the sands around it in the course of years; of its purchase and
subsequent transport to the Blaker farm near Alvordton, Ohio. Many
were the difficulties encountered, including several brushes with
the law, but it was finally restored to its original condition and
shown at more than one of the Reunions of the Association, of which
Louis was a very active member.
History doesn’t exactly repeat itself, but here, for what it
is worth, is the true story of another steam traction engine of the
name of Avery.
All who knew Louie David, ‘The Little Giant’, were
stunned at his sudden passing in 1958, at the age of 56. His large
collection of steam engines was scattered, since, as so often
happens, his son Gerald had no interest in them or in anything
powered with steam-gas was his interest. The Avery 40 of the story
was purchased by members of the LaPorte County Historical Steam
Society, where it may be seen during their annual shows. Another of
Louis’ engines was or is the 1965 HP Port Huron, purchased by
the National Threshers Association in 1958.
In addition to the engines mentioned above, Louis had acquired
two other Averys’. Since he stood only about five feet tall, it
was inevitable that he should be fascinated with these Avery
engines, to my knowledge among the very largest steam traction
engines ever built. One he found near Innisfail, Alberta, Canada,
(after his death, a Mr. Hartley of near Janesville, Wisconsin,
purchased this particular Avery to show at the steam show near his
home.) For some unexplained reason, LeRoy and I had never known
where the other Avery 20 had gone until two years ago. By chance,
we learned that a retired Detroit insurance man, Mr. Earl B.
Davison, had bought it to add to his considerable collection of
antiques, engines and farm machinery, being assembled at a farm he
owned near Plymouth, Michigan.
Now it should be mentioned that after the untimely death of
Louis David, another young man, Robert Zeller of Medway, near
Dayton, Ohio, had offered to operate the Avery, at that time still
stored at the Blaker farm. With the help of a friend or two, he ran
the engine at the NTA Reunions, which had outgrown the Blaker farm
and were held at the Williams County Fairgrounds, from 1953 to
1964. So it was perhaps natural that after the discovery of the
whereabouts of this other Avery, it occurred to the writer to
enlist the services of Robert Z., provided Mr. Davison would allow
the Avery to be transported to Ohio. To make a long story short,
Mr. Davison, Mr. Zeller and the NTA came to an agreement and we
confidently set out to have the engine trucked to the Fulton County
Fairgrounds near Wauseon for the 23rd annual Reunion of the
National Threshers Association of 1967.
But ‘there’s many a slip’ and to begin with we
couldn’t find a trucker willing haul this oversize engine. When
we did finally locate a man willing to undertake the job, the
weather was so wet that Spring that he was unable to get on the
grounds where the engine was stored. Time for the Reunion drew near
and it wasn’t until a very short time previous to that the
engine was at last unloaded at the Fairgrounds. Here again was
difficulty and as Paul (Bud) Gar-man can testify, getting that
giant off the low-boy was almost the last thing he participated in
at the Fulton County Fairgrounds-or at any other grounds, for that
matter. Time was now so short that we all knew that little could be
done to the old giant before the Reunion, but plans were made to
have it in shape before the 1968 Reunion the last of June.
‘Greater love hath no man’ than that of a truly devoted
steam engine fan in remaking a dirty, greasy, unsafe old steam
traction engine. Such a man is this Robert Zeller, a good-looking,
good-operating engineer. (He is only one of a legion, as readers of
The Album well know.) He is also a persuasive man, as he proved by
the number and caliber of men who rallied to his support as he
began the tremendous job of refueling, re-finishing and painting
the big Avery.
Indispensable in this program was the old school bus, which
Robert has ingeniously turned into a shop on wheels, with space for
cooking and sleeping. Week after week he drove this big bus up from
Medway, accompanied by four or five steam enthusiasts. But again
the weatherman seemed determined to prevent or at least hamper
these efforts, as torrential rains fell each time they came up to
the Fairgrounds.
It was decided by Mr. Davison to authorize the installation of a
complete set of new flues, and LeRoy went to Toledo to place an
order for them. Imagine the disgust and surprise when after making
a second trip to get them and unload them before the ‘Medway
crew’ arrived, to find that they were inch short, and
definitely not the length ordered! So back LeRoy took them,
bringing back a new set, which were eventually installed. But by
now time was growing so short that to get the grease all scraped
off, the new paint on, and all else that was planned to be done,
appeared to be impossible. But by working even after the official
opening of the 1968 Reunion on Thursday, June 27, the impossible
was accomplished and the Avery was steamed up and driven proudly
from the work spot at the west end of the grounds onto the infield,
where of course, it was the immediate center of attraction. It was
driven in each of the three parades during the 1968 Reunion and
participated in as many other activities as were possible because
of the wet condition of much of the infield.
I think it was Napoleon who said that an army travels on its
stomach, and it was no less true that the good meals cooked for the
men by Mr. and Mrs. Hutchinson supplied the energy they needed for
the monumental task. They made four trips of 230 miles each, and
put in over 300 man-hours, in addition to the considerable amount
of time spent repairing parts at Mr. Zeller’s home shop. But
Robert says they all enjoyed working on the Avery and hope to do
more on it next Spring.
When the other engines and machines were put in the big storage
barn rented by the NTA at the Fairgrounds, this behemoth was also
put in, but through another set of doors, being too high to go in
through the same doors as all the others. ‘It looks pretty good
to see everything in out of the weather’ says LeRoy Blaker,
when he visits the Fairgrounds every once in a while. Mean while
Mr. Davison, Robert Zeller and his valiant crew plan ahead to the
Silver Anniversary of the founding of the NTA. ‘We will all,
God willing, be on hand next June to help make the 25th the
Greatest Reunion of all, but I have enjoyed every one for the past
22 years, ‘says Mr. Zeller. To which I, as a mere woman, would
like to add that though for the life of me I can’t understand
why men like to work so hard and get so dirty as these steam men
do. It is their faithfulness for 25 years that has brought that
first small gathering on the Blaker farm in 1945 to the present,
when many thousands will help celebrate the Silver Anniversary of
the National Threshers Association, Inc. June 26-29 at the Fulton
County Fairgrounds, two miles north of Wauseon, Ohio, at Exit 3 of
the Ohio Turnpike.
P.S. It occurs to me that I have omitted what is possibly the
outstanding feature of this story. It is the fact that Mr. Zeller
and his ‘crew’ were paid in money not one cent for all
their hours of work and miles of driving, by either Mr. Davison or
the NTA, in accordance with their wishes. It was all ‘ A Labor
of Love’.