Oberlin event celebrating 30 years

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

OBERLIN, Kansas -- The time is almost here! The Mini Sappa Antique Thresher & Engine Show is once again just around the corner, but this year participants have a special reason to celebrate. The upcoming show on Sept. 18 and 19 commemorates a 30-year history of people in the Oberlin, Kansas, community and surrounding area getting together to experience and enjoy the sights and sounds of days gone by with all things vintage and agricultural.

Speaking of the past, perhaps a little history lesson is due as we prepare for the 2010 Mini Sappa Show.

In the Beginning...

Many years ago, in October of 1981, a small group of enthusiasts got together to display and demonstrate a variety of tractors, farm equipment, small engines and automobiles. Where did they choose to congregate for this event? Why, it was the Decatur County Fairgrounds--the same location the Mini Sappa club uses today.

The main organizers for this first show were Allen "Bus" and Carolyn Wurm. According to Carolyn in a 1987 Clarion article, the show began because they had been attending the Bird City show for quite some time and thought it would be a good activity to get started locally before the 1985 Oberlin Centennial. In the article, Carolyn also added, "The threshers have so much area history surrounding them we decided that it would be an appropriate event."

An estimated 10 automobiles, 18 tractors and 17 small engines were present at that first show.

Among them was Bus and Carolyn's 1916 30-60 HP Aultman Taylor, the tractor on which the official club logo is based. Some other identified exhibits included Dwayne Jones' 1928 Ford Model A, Bus Wurm's 1918 International Harvester Titan tractor, Lowell Ayers' Case threshing machine, Tracy Lincoln's 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air, Charlie Lincoln's 1963 Chevrolet Nova SS convertible and Jerry Bantam's 1915 Ford Model T. Also on display was an antique, homemade tractor created by Harry Schrammel. Harry gave this tractor to Bus shortly before the show, and the two of them worked diligently so that it could be in running condition for the event.

While we're on the subject of Mr. Schrammel, the little train that everyone in the Oberlin area knows so well was at that first show, too. Harry and Betty Schrammel donated the 15-inch gauge train for the Decatur County Fairgrounds in 1980, and people were even more excited about it then than they are now, over 30 years later. Some of the farm demonstrations during the show included running a pumpjack, operating a large fan and threshing with the Case separator.

Through the Years...

Within a few years of that first show, the Mini Sappa club was officially formed, and the annual event just kept getting bigger and better. More exhibitors and spectators poured in from the surrounding cities and states. Each year, additional farm equipment was demonstrated.

New features such as the kids' tractor pull, exhibitors' parade and vendor market were added. What started as a small get-together with fewer than 50 exhibits turned into a major attraction, at times bringing in well over 2,000 people and hosting hundreds of entries.

Many hands helped make the Mini Sappa Antique Thresher & Engine Show a success, and they continue to do so today. People from the club, the Oberlin community and the surrounding area come together year after year to put on a great show so that the valued history represented in each and every old hunk of iron on display won't be forgotten -- so that the area's agricultural past can be revealed to generations of the future.

The Big 3-0...

This year, organizers are planning for another great event, with several new additions to the show in the works. For example, after several years without one, the club hopes to see a Case steam engine on the grounds this year. This will complement the other vintage tractors, automobiles, stationary engines, farm equipment, and quilts--all of which are free to exhibit. As usual, there will be plenty of activities for the kids, including free rides on the famed Schrammel train mentioned previously. Don't miss the stock garden tractor pull both days and the hog roast on Saturday evening. A full list of exhibits and activities can be found on the circulating show flyers as well as on the show's official website, www.minisappashow.com.

The flyers and website contain contact details for specific show aspects. You may also call (785) 626-3315 or (785) 322-5563 for general information.

Admission and parking are free, so bring the whole family along for a great day out. In addition, take advantage of the U.S. Highway 36 Treasure Hunt event on the same weekend.

The date is set for Sept. 18 and 19 so mark your calendars and make plans to attend the 2010 Mini Sappa Antique Thresher & Engine Show.


Admission and parking are free both days. Registration and breakfast begin at 7 a.m. each day.

Events begin at 9 a.m. each day and include these highlights:

SATURDAY

11 a.m. -- Kids' pedal tractor pull.

1 p.m., Stock garden tractor pull.

4 p.m -- Parade.

6 p.m. -- Hog roast, $6 per person, free to exhibitors and vendors.

SUNDAY

8 a.m. -- On-site church service.

3 p.m. -- Parade, followed by raffle drawings for a quilt and an Allis Chalmers WC tractor, need not be present to win.

Throughout each day will be farm machinery demonstrations, kids' games, free model train rides, a vendor market, quilt show and viewings of stationary engines, cars, truck and antique farm machinery.

Steel lugs and leashed dogs are welcome.

For more information, call (785) 626-3315; (785) 475-3300; (785) 322-5563; or (785) 475-3517.

Vendors can call (785) 475-3300 or (785) 626-3315.

Garden tractor pullers can call (785) 443-0498.

Food and drinks will be available on site.

Visit the website www.minisappashow.com or Google Mini Sappa Antique Thresher and Engine Show.

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