ROCHESTER — Antique tractor enthusiast Chuck Smith preserves the past by teaching younger generations about the machines that paved the way to today’s farming practices.

Smith, director of the Hoosier Co-op Jamboree antique tractor club, said exposing people to antique tractors gives them an understanding of how their grandparents started off with horses and over time used steam engines, which developed into gas engines.

This progression can be viewed at the eighth annual Fulton County Historical Power Show just north of Rochester. The goal of the show, which is sponsored by the Fulton County Historical Power Association and Fulton County Historical Society, is to preserve history. Smith encourages people to come out and visit.

“They can see it all,” he said. “History is here.”

This year’s featured tractors are the Cockshutt 30’s and the Co-op E3’s. The clubs representing these antique machines — International Cockshutt Club and Hoosier Co-op Jamboree — were both in attendance.

According to a Fulton County Historical Power Association club newsletter, James Cockshutt was a blacksmith, who made steel plows in Ontario, Canada in 1877. He eventually teamed up with tractor companies Avery, Allis-Chalmers, Co-op and Black Hawk to produce the Cockshutt 30’s. The partnership makes the tractor a rarity.

Co-op first manufactured its E3 model in 1926. By 1935, the tractor came equipped with rubber tires, a self-starter button and a six cylinder Chrysler engine with a road gear that had a top speed of 25-mph, which allowed farmers to switch fields and move loads faster.

A different tractor brand is honored each year at the show. The idea is to attract new people by spotlighting one particular brand, says Melinda Clinger, museum director and Fulton County Historical Power Association club secretary.

In addition to the honored tractors, owners of other tractors attend to show off their brand, too. Some on hand were Oliver, Minneapolis-Moline, John Deere, Allis-Chalmers, International and Farmall.

“Some look prettier than they did when they came out of the factory,” Smith said. “The guys do the best they can to match the original color. It’s important to me to keep them as close to original as we can.”

The show attracts people from across the country and Canada. The three-day event offers a variety of activities, including sawmill and field demonstrations with threshing, corn shelling and baling, a ladies skillet toss, parades, team tractor pulls, pitcher pump contest, tractor or garden tractor games, light and heavy weight pulls, pedal tractor pull, powder puff pull, 50/50 pull, and a horse pull.

Tater Creek Bluegrass Band performed music Friday night and a banquet was held Saturday night.

Visitors had the opportunity to take a look inside the museum and living history village and purchase goods vendors offering food, toys, crafts and flea market items.

The event has grown significantly. The first year had just 12 to 15 tractors. The largest show included 500 normal-sized tractors, 200 to 300 garden tractors and several of the earliest gasoline engines, known as hit and miss engines, Clinger said.

No steam engines were present the first year but this year’s show brought out five steam engines and a half scale steam engine.

Like Smith, Clinger believes offering the power show each year is important because once the tractor or the people who know the history of the tractors aren’t around to remember them anymore, the history will be lost as well.

“We want to preserve the history of the antique tractors,” she said.

Both Clinger and Smith enjoy the fellowship at the event. Smith has met new friends from six different states over the last 25 years. Clinger enjoys listening to stories told about the tractors.

“Listening to the older generation — you learn so much if you just sit and listen,” she said.

Melvin Stamberger and his grandson Jordan Stamberger, both of Rochester, displayed Melvin’s half-scale steam locomotive at the show.

Melvin and his son built the locomotive, which they completed in 1971. It had been several years since the locomotive ran, so he decided it might be a good idea to fire it up at this year’s power show.

Melvin’s love for steam trains covers most of his life. At the show on Saturday, he pondered why.

“I think I lived too close to the railroad,” he said. “I love steam engines. It’s a good way to get dirty.”

• Denise Massie is a staff writer at the Pharos-Tribune. She can be reached at 574-732-5151 or denise.massie@pharostribune.com.