History of Our Club - 1970s

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The following information was taken from facts compiled for the Rice County Steam & Gas Engines, Inc. Club by Mr. Dean Britton. Edits were made, but the overall content was not changed. Thank you Dean from all the current and future club members for all your hard work and devotion to the club. Without Dean's record-keeping, this writing would not be possible.

Rice County Steam & Gas Engines, Inc. has evolved from the original 4 founders (C.E. Purdie, S.F. Cross, Fred Berndt and Joe Cross) to over 76 family ( 120 individual) memberships.

1974

Clarence Purdie bought two 50 hp Case steam engines. and restored them with the help of S.F. (Smokey) Cross. They decided to have a free threshing show and exhibit, and held it at the corner of Highway 60 and Western Avenue in Faribault, Minnesota. About half a load of oat bundles were threshed and approximately 30 people attended.

1975

The original founders C.E. Purdie, S.F. Cross, Fred Berndt and Joe Cross, decided they would start a club and so was born what would later be known as the Rice County Steam and Gas Engines, Inc. Club. Later that summer a few more people joined the club and it was decided to hold a show and exhibit on the Loren Dahle farm in Warsaw, Minnesota. Fred Berndt was elected to be the first president of the club.

1976

The club held two shows. One was north of Faribault on Highway 3 and the second one was at the Rice County Fairgrounds in Faribault, Minnesota. Smokey Cross was president of the the club at this time.

1978

Club moved to the Malecha brothers farm located in Little Chicago, Minnesota. Interest still remained in threshing, but there was a lot of interest in stationary flywheel gas engines (large & small). There was also interest in steel wheel tractors and some of the equipment.