Massey Harris GP Finds Home in Wales

By Fred Hendricks
Published on November 18, 2010
article image
courtesy of Fred Hendricks
Back view of the GP.

A collector’s quest for a remarkable farm tractor can be almost limitless. In Steve Watts’ case, the hunt spanned the Atlantic Ocean. Steve, who lives in Abergele, Wales, U.K., coveted a Massey-Harris General Purpose four-wheel drive tractor primarily because of its groundbreaking technology. And it was rare. When Steve’s friend, John Farnworth, stumbled across a newspaper ad for a GP in Millersburg, Pa., in 2005, it seemed too good to be true. But the two-line description of the Massey-Harris tractor along with a phone number resulted in the lead Steve had dreamed about.

“I made contact immediately, not thinking for one moment the tractor would still be available,” Steve recalls. “To my utmost surprise, it was. I chatted with the owner, Mrs. Joyce Reinfield, about the tractor. The old Massey belonged to her father who had passed away two years earlier. It had been stored in an old farm shed partially covered with loose straw. Our conversation ended with a promise that Mrs. Reinfield would keep the tractor until I could see pictures. Within two weeks I received a letter containing two photos.”

Steve was anxious to move the process along, but a five-hour time difference required patience. “When I finally made the trans-Atlantic call, I learned that Mrs. Reinfield was true to her word. She had turned away several inquiries from the U.S., South America and Australia,” he says. “I next wondered if the tractor was a runner. She remembered her dad running the tractor a short time before his passing. We reached an agreeable price, but then came the bombshell. Mrs. Reinfield wanted cash as she did not trust banks and would not accept any normal money transactions. My heart was in my mouth for the next two weeks until I learned that she had received her money in the post so the deal was completed.”

Roots in agriculture

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