Contribution to EDGE&TA
Alan’s lifetime has been spent in Ridgefield, Washington and he comes from a long line of mechanical talent. His grandfather was the “village blacksmith” who repaired most everything in his rural community and threshed for the area. Alan’s father, Paul, and his Uncle Clyde were geniuses at machine design, construction and repair and Alan was raised in this environment.
Alan’s exposure to old equipment started at age 8 when his dad, Paul, held the first steam threshing bee on the west coast in 1950. From then on his life has been very busy collecting, restoring and displaying old iron at fairs, parades and shows. His favorite activity is restoring anything old – especially the rough and incomplete projects. His current project is reconstruction of three Best 75 Tractors (14 tons each) starting with only an engine, radiator and front wheel for each one, building from scratch frames, tracks, sprockets, transmissions, etc.
Alan’s farm has been dubbed “The Iron Ranch” because of the large volume of old iron scattered around and in eight buildings, all stuffed full of collectables of all kinds. The Iron Ranch is host to tractor pulls, club meetings, tours, field events and individual tours. It hosts the Branch 23 annual show and monthly meetings and has hosted an EDGE&TA National Meet and an EDGE&TA Regional Meet.
Alan’s involvement with EDGE&TA started in the 1970’s and includes several years as President of Branch 15, forming Fort Vancouver Antique Equipment Association (Branch 23), helping form Branch 206, being an EDGE&TA Advisor for northwest and southwest regions as well as membership in other branches and many other collector and community organizations.
Submitted by,
Buster Brown