Frank Portera takes pride in his 1925 Best antique tractor
because it reminds people of the orchard heritage of Silicon Valley
when it was once known as The Valley of Hearts Delight for the
miles of orchards that fed off the highly fertile soil.
Gilroy – Frank Portera takes pride in his 1925 Best antique tractor because it reminds people of the orchard heritage of Silicon Valley when it was once known as The Valley of Hearts Delight for the miles of orchards that fed off the highly fertile soil.
Up to 250 people strolled through the 4th Annual Antique Tractor show Saturday and Sunday in San Martin to see antique engines and tractors stretched across a full acre. This is the only antique tractor show of this magnitude to take place in the area, said Rod Herrick, 40, the event organizer.
“A lot of these tractors were used in the orchards, and there aren’t many left,” said Herrick, a San Martin resident. “The event is about preserving history, how these tractors were used,” he added.
Herrick used part of his property for the show where more than 45 engines and tractors from the early 1900s, including the Caterpillar 10, the smallest tractor at the show (about the size of a riding mower), to the Holt 75, a tractor first built in 1890 that could pull up to 50 tons.
The event consisted of a display of antique tractors of all makes, from farm machinery to antique construction machinery, to one-cylinder stationary engines. At the “play area,” tractor collectors were encouraged to take their machines and disc a field or dig holes.
“They’re fun and a lot of the people put many hours into restoring the pieces of equipment,” said Peter Sonne, president of the San Benito Historical Society and member of the Early Day Gas Engine and Tractor Association. “A lot of the small stationary engines were used out in the fields to pump water. On the weekends, women would use them for household chores,” he added.
The Early Day Gas Engine and Tractor Association is a nonprofit formed in 1957 and is a national organization whose purpose is to stimulate interest in collecting, restoring, preserving, and exhibiting gasoline and oil engines, gas/diesel and steam tractors, power driven farm machinery and any other equipment of historical value.
Other tractors such as the Caterpillar R2 model, owned by collector Bill Mancus, ran on gasoline and holds decades of history encapsulated in it’s gas tank.
“The 1940 Cat R2 model ran on gasoline instead of diesel. They didn’t make as many of these during WWII,” said Mancus, an Aromas resident. “The reason the military built it was because they wanted to use only one kind of fuel, that made it easier,” said Mancus, who has collected tractors for 30 years. “It’s nice to bring them out here, it’s local” he added.
Only four years ago residents such as Portera, Rod Herrick and Wally Adams decided to bring a tractor show to the area because of urbanization occurring in Santa Clara Valley and to show off their collection of tractors. The Early Day Gas Engine and Tractor Association decided to hold the event.
“It’s not just a hunk of iron,” said Sonne. “They all have history behind them, and I hope people continue to become aware of that,” he said.
Event organizers hope to hold more events in the future to get the momentum going said Herrick and seek more support from the community.
“It’s about keeping the heritage alive,” Portera said.
