Home What´s New   Search this site   About this site   About R & T   Overview   History   Membership   The Whistle   Photo Albums   Reg. Events   Special   Articles   Visitors Info   2011 Schedule     Tractor Pulls   Regulations   Garden Tractor   Exhibitor Info   Gift Shop   Organization   Officers&Dir's   Committees   Volunteer Corner   What is it?   Contacting Us     October 2, 2000		The History of Rough and Tumble Engineers Historical Association, Inc. 1948 - 1988 as told by Marie Bongiavonni Page 1 of 3 (Click here for a printable version.)   Amid the fertile, rolling farmlands of historic Lancaster County lies an unobtrusive world of power. A place where people, progress, and preservation maintain a delicate balance. Where caring, commitment, and creativity count. It´s the world of Rough and Tumble Engineers´ Historical Association. And as they celebrate their 40th anniversary, it´s a celebration of men and their marvelous machines. In recognition of innovation, dedication, and perseverance. Rough and Tumble´s massive, sturdy engines attest to countless contributions and loving labor. They stand in tribute to the association´s history and our nation´s technology. And they reflect a collection - not only of material objects - but of members, volunteers, and folklore. An outstanding collection that documents the history of power. But Rough and Tumble wasn´t created as a collection. It began as an event - a threshermen´s reunion that, for all intents and purposes, never totally ended. Yet while the camaraderie continues, the organization evolves. The first Rough and Tumble social gathering was held in 1948 on the grounds of Arthur S. Young´s farm equipment dealership south of Route 30 at the east end of Kinzers, Pennsylvania. Steam engine enthusiasts had encouraged Young to have a show to display his collection of engines. As an officer of the Pennsylvania Threshermen and Farmers Protective Association, Young persuaded that group to provide free food and advertising for the event. "Prior to that time, most threshermen had owned and relied on steam engines to conduct their business," said Titus Brubaker, who worked as a custom threshermen for almost half a century and served on Rough and Tumble´s original board of directors. Early in the 20th century, when threshermen travelled from farm to farm, steel-cleated iron drive wheels on steam traction engines often damaged newly paved highways throughout Pennsylvania. This prompted attempts to keep steel-cleated rigs off the roads, and confrontations between threshermen and the commonwealth were common. "To keep the engines on the road, the Pennsylvania Threshermen and Farmers Protective Association was formed," Brubaker said. Membership included farm equipment dealers, farmers, and threshermen organized to present agrarian interests to the state legislature. Lebanon and Lancaster counties were the most active chapters in the statewide organization. Eventually, their efforts were successful, and a special cleat was designed that allowed the engines to stay on the roads, Brubaker said. However, by mid-century, tractors were taking over. They were handier and took less time to get into operation. So when steam engines were at the end of their season, the protective association felt that its work was done. They hosted one large picnic for hundreds of folks, some of whom "drove engines 20 miles over the road to get to that show." Steam engines were fired up, and machinery hummed. "Many in the crowd had a fascination for steam," said Roy Herr, who designed innovative agricultural equipment and helped with Rough and Tumble´s early activities, serving as its original secretary/ treasurer. "There´s something about the operation of a steam engine that gets in a person´s blood. There´s something about the feel and sound of that.... It´s a smooth kind of power. Steam. It´s ready. When you crack the throttle things start happening. "But some folks at the reunion just had a smattering of experience with steam," Herr added. "Still, everyone enjoyed themselves." In fact, the picnic was so successful that enthusiastic participants decided to establish a threshermen´s reunion as an annual event, and under the direction of Arthur S. Young and other leaders, formalized organization and planning. Arthur S. Young, who had been active in the agricultural protective association, was a primary force in Rough and Tumble´s creation. Born in 1888 the son of a custom thresherman, Young seemed naturally interested in steam engines and mechanical problems. "From the time he was in school, he had a love for steam," said C. Everett Young, Arthur´s son and a currently active Rough and Tumbler. "Just recently, we discovered some of Dad´s early drawings of steam engines.... So even as a kid, he had that in his blood." The senior Young´s passion for steam continued, and in 1907, while employed in a machine shop that manufactured farming equipment, Art Young purchased a steam traction engine. With his own crew, he started a custom threshing rig, touring area farms during harvest season. As did other local repair and machine shop operators, Young ran the threshing rig in the summer and worked in the shop the rest of the year. In 1916, he opened his own farm machinery business. Prospering, he sold, repaired, and operated steam-powered traction engines and built a number of steam-driven railroad locomotives. "At that time, everything was powered by steam," said C. Everett Young. "Dad also sold and repaired threshers, fodder shredders, sawmill equipment, and silo fillers. During offseasons, when not used for threshing, steam engines were used to steam soil, operate sawmills, stone crushers, and road graders. In other words, he had 'power for sale.' "As steam engines were replaced by gas tractors, Dad did a lot of trading. Eventually, he ended up with real old units - steam engines, threshers, and balers - that weren´t salable anymore. This made up the yard. The scrap yard. To my Father, there was no such thing as scrap. There was only salvage.... He could take nothing and make something out of it," Young said with gentle pride.   Go to Page 2 of 3.   © Rough and Tumble Engineers Historical Association, Kinzer, PA The above history is reprinted from the book "Rough and Tumble Engineering", which is itself a reprint of James H. Maggard´s "Book of Instructions for Operators of Farm and Traction Engines". The reprint was originally published in 1988 in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Rough and Tumble Engineers Historical Association. This book is available from the Rough and Tumble Gift Shop.
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