PONTIAC, Ill. (WMBD) — Thursday kicked off the 75th Annual Central States Threshermen’s Reunion. The first steam held at the reunion was in 1949, making it the second oldest steam show in America.
Thousands of people come from not only the Midwest but from across the US for the reunion. There’s even a traveler from Saskatchewan, a providence in Canada.
Many of the travelers come from farming families and have equipment such as tractors and steam engines that have been in their families for almost 120 years.
This year the reunion introduced the Alvin H. Immke Farmer Museum in honor of one of their member who died last year. The Immke family has owned their farm since 1872. Items in the museum come from the late Immke’s collection.
Reunion President Dave Herz said the people make the reunion special.
“I see people here over the Labor Day weekend for the show that I don’t see throughout the year. So, everybody comes back and we kind of catch up on what’s going on,” he said. “We laugh at each other and sometimes we cry with each other. It’s just a special time. There’s special people here.”
The fun lasts until Monday. Tickets are $10 daily and children 13 and under are free.
