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Story Subject Category: Antiques/Collectibles
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By host and producer Alison Davis Wood
Since I didn’t grow up on farm, I could never quite understand why so many people are interested in antique tractors. But then I married a farmer and it started to make sense. When I asked my husband Rob why farmers spent so much time and money restoring old tractors, he said, “You remember all the memories of working with that tractor. It got you through some tough days and some hard times. You look back and realize how many hours you spent riding that tractor.” When I went to Historic Farm Days, I heard these sentiments echoed by everyone. For some, that old John Deere, Case or International was a part of the family.
The I and I Tractor Club puts on an incredible event every year in Penfield. The highlight each day is the Big Parade where many of the tractors take a lap around the grounds. It gives you a chance to see exactly how these old machines operate and how much work went into making them run like new again. But one of the best parts of Historic Farm Days is the field demonstrations, where you get to actually smell the freshly cut hay and hear the engines chug. It also allows you to truly appreciate how today’s tractors are much safer and easier to operate.
When I heard Don Walser’s “John Deere Tractor Song,” I knew it was a perfect fit for this story. I have always been a fan of Don Walser and there is something special to hear him sing “I love the smell of fresh plowed ground.” My husband put it on his i-pod and plans to sing along from his own green tractor.
Segment duration: 06:25
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Producer: Alison Davis Wood
Chief Camera - Segment: Tim Hartin and Virginia Steffen
This segment is filed in these categories: Agriculture/Agribusiness • Antiques/Collectibles • Penfield
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Ray McIntyre was a man of few words. His whole world was his collection of miniature trains that he proudly displayed in his own museum. But none of it would have been possible without the help of volunteers from the Piatt County Museum. They took care of Ray for thirty years. They would take him to do his grocery shopping, do his laundry and most importantly pick him up every day of the year and take him to his museum. There Ray would spend the day being the boss of Rayville. This charming museum caught the eye of former WILL producer Matt Docter. Matt worked extremely hard on this story using unique camera angles to take the viewer inside the Rayville train layout. He also worked hard coaxing an interview out Mr. McIntyre. Matt and his twin brother Jason are also musicians, so they played and recorded music for the story. Now that Ray has passed, we hope this segment is a fitting tribute to a man who really loved trains. Rayville has closed and now it is the location of Prairie Fire Glass Studio. Soon the Rayville collection will be on display at the new Piatt County Museum. Matt Docter has since moved to Los Angeles and has a successful band call The Lift (http://www.theliftstation.com). He has also appeared in several films, ads and TV shows.
Segment duration: 10:08
Producer: Alison Davis Wood
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Hobbies • Railroads
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WILL-TV videographer Julius Bolton climbed into car #2 in the country’s oldest vintage car rally, The Great Race, as it headed into Urbana last summer. He follows the action with driver Anna Mae Phillips and navigator Dan Colasanti as they handle the race course without a calculator, GPS system or cell phone.
Segment duration: 07:22
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Producer: Lillie Buck
Chief Camera - Segment: Julius Bolton, Henry Radcliffe
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Automotive • Sports
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Since 1975, Kenny Davis has laid 2300 feet of track, including bridges and tunnels, for small scale railroads at his house in Decatur. He welcomes help from friends to keep up his layout, and once a year, invites them for a party to celebrate railroading.
Segment duration: 03:06
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Producer: Lillie Buck
Chief Camera - Segment: Ian Mitchell
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Arts/Culture • Hobbies • Illinois Culture/History • Railroads
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The B-R-S baseball museum began as a small collection of baseballs and photographs that were displayed in a Nokomis restaurant window. The museum moved five times before members purchased a building to house their increasing collection. Now visitors can view photographs, scrapbooks and gloves from a century of baseball. The museum pays tribute to all outstanding players from the Nokomis area, including Hall of Famers Jim Bottomley, Charles Ruffing, and Ray Schalk.
Segment duration: 06:31
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Producer: Alison Davis Wood
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Hobbies • Illinois Culture/History • Libraries/Museums/Cultural Centers • Sports
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At the ship museum, visitors not only have a chance to see ship models used in movies like Cleopatra, Tora Tora Tora, Ben Hur, Showboat and Tugboat Annie, they also can talk to the collector, Charles Lozar, about where he acquired the models and all the rest of the items in the museum. He started collecting as a child 50 years ago. He eventually became an architect, but he never lost his love of the ocean.
Phone: 217-398-1998
Segment duration: 05:53
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Producer: Martha Diehl
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Arts/Culture • Libraries/Museums/Cultural Centers • Sadorus
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Segment duration: 03:24
Producer: Brian Paris
Chief Camera - Segment: Brian Paris
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Arts/Culture • Hobbies
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Segment duration: 10:06
Producer: Alison Davis Wood
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles • Hobbies • Libraries/Museums/Cultural Centers • Monticello
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On his farm south of Bement, Ray Walsh’s collection of old tractors tells the story of how farming has changed over the years. Fifty old tractors he has restored to working order make up a kind of mini-museum of farming history, says WILL-TV’s Alison Davis, who visits Walsh in the season premiere of Prairie Fire. “He held on to a lot of old tractors he farmed with in the 1950s, but his collection really got started when he bought a tractor like the one his dad used in the 1920s,” Davis said.
Walsh travels around the country to compete in tractor pulls, and on his travels, he always has his eye out for old tractors. As he describes the tractors in his collection, viewers get a glimpse of what farming was like years ago. “Walsh remembers the days before tractors had cabs when farmers were outside exposed to the elements all day long,” said Davis. “The corn and bean dust caused breathing problems for a lot of farmers, including Walsh. So tractors have not only gotten more convenient and efficient, they’ve also gotten a lot safer.”
Segment duration: 07:13
Producer: Alison Davis
This segment is filed in these categories: Agriculture/Agribusiness • Antiques/Collectibles • Automotive • Illinois Culture/History • Bement
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Segment duration: 03:30
Producer: Alison Davis
Advisor: Barbara Peckham
This segment is filed in these categories: Antiques/Collectibles
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