Nebraska
Nebraska has some nice days and one of them was Sunday, August
8, when Trauger’s Old Timers Day was held in Trauger’s
Grove about two miles Southeast of Exeter. It is put on mostly by
the Trauger family with a little outside help. It was a very nice
day with just enough breeze to keep the smoke and exhaust moved
The program started at 10 AM with spinning and weaving. There
was a church service at 11 and lunch by Epworth Village. Flag
raising was at 12:30 with an address by Katheryn Riddle. An old car
and truck parade was an attraction followed by an address by
Nebraska Historian Dr. Robert Manley.
Later in the afternoon there was a demonstration of threshing
with the flail then man powered and on to the hand-fed threshers.
The first was a N.S. 8 HP engine and a Keystone hand feed thresher
and web stacker and an 8 HP Frick belted to a Belle City thresher
hand feed and web stacker. Another Frick was belted to a
Westinghouse thresher while a 50 HP Case was belted to a Port Huron
thresher and a Port Huron single compound long fellow to another
thresher. All did some threshing.
In the shelling, Glen Fricken’s nicely restored Oliver Hart
Parr was belted to a Joliet 6-hole sheller that was manufactured in
Joliet prison factory.
The sawmill was powered by a 60 HP Advance Rumely engine sawing
many pieces of wood. There also was a lathe saw operated part
time.
The gas engine alley was enjoying the nice shade trees. Many
makes were represented popping away for everyone’s
enjoyment.
