April 4, 2018 at 5:30 p.m.
Duck Ponderings: Tractor buy turns into a lifelong investment
They had already gone into debt to purchase the farm. A tractor was a necessity to farm their land to bring in much needed revenue. Dad was interested in a 1950 Ford 8N for a price of $1,400 which included a two-bottom plow. He went to Dupont State Bank, Glen Malott, and asked for another loan. Glen agreed but stressed to Dad the importance of getting the price reduced. Dad negotiated for hours and finally got them to take $50 off the original price by closing time. When returning to Glen with the news, Glen stated, "Well, Roy, that $50 is a good day's work!"
The tractor did a lot work on my parents' farm, and Dad was asked by several neighbors to plow up their gardens. It also served as my parents' first car. When needing to visit neighbors or relatives, Dad would drive and Mom would get on one of the fenders. Dad attached and secured a tub on the drawbar to carry two young nephews which Mom took care of one summer while her sister worked in Indy. Within a year, the Ford tractor had helped them enough financially that Dad and Mom were able to buy their first actual car, another proud moment!
Even though I was very young, I recall raising sugar cane in a small field close to a spring. The Ford took the place of a mule in taking a long pole around and around which turned a mill that squeezed the juice out of the cane. Drivers would have to take turns on the Ford due to getting dizzy. Eventually, through a long process, there would be thick and tasty molasses. Mom fondly recalls how relatives and neighbors would come in for a stir-off where they would cut a piece of cane to around 12 inches, dip and twist it in the foam and then lick it off. It was better than any candy! Now, I'm having a great urge for my Grandmother Baker's gingerbread cookies, among the best treats consumed in my lifetime.
One Halloween night, two of Mom's brothers drove from Indy to play a prank involving the beloved Ford. They took it out of gear and pushed it from the barn down a hill in back of our farm. When Dad checked the next morning on his tractor, part of his routine each day, he panicked. He rushed to the house to ask Mom if she had given permission to someone to take the tractor without asking him.
They thought someone had stolen it. Then, Dad found wheel tracks which he followed. He was quite relieved when finding the Ford and still in perfect condition. It is a good thing there was not a flood during that night because water would have gotten over it like my tent one time when establishing a camping area too close to Graham Creek. The missing tractor remained a mystery for years until Mom's brothers finally got the nerve to inform them. Much laughter followed a period of silence!
One time, I was plowing. Somehow, I got a small tree between the front bumper and grill of the tractor at the end of the field when looking back at the plow. The incident took place close to the road, and I was quite embarrassed by the predicament. With my heart racing, I rushed to the barn to get an ax and then hurried back to the field to cut the tree down hoping none of the neighbors would drive by.
As Mom requested of Dad when he purchased it, the 1950 Ford 8N was never sold and remained active even after investing in a used 3020 John Deere in the seventies, a much different tractor. I doubt if Dad ever expected the Ford to be in like-new shape in 2015. Then again, he married a woman who loved him very much as well as his tractor. I suspect Mom saw the grin on Dad's face when the Ford came back home in such great shape, the same ear-to-ear grin he had 65 years ago.[[In-content Ad]]
