I belong to the local Amateur Radio Club and the one paying function they do every year is to help out at the Pawnee Steam Engine show… We are asked every year to man the gates as volunteers and sell tickets so the other volunteers can focus on the critical items of the show. Now, I had never been to the show. I had been In Pawnee and had driven by the park which is adjacent to the county fair grounds and school football field, etc.… but it seems the larger portion of the site is owned by the Steam Engine group. They do have a large collection and people come from all over to attend this, basically the first of the season for the touring Steam Engine followers. You can check out the OST&GEA site here.
We are a small group and generally are probably under manned to take care of three access gates to this show but we do our best to keep the public moving and happy. I was told that last year they passed about 1000 people on the first day, and that does not include the exhibitors which probably by number just as many… A lot of them come and camp on the grounds as they are selling, showing or just need to be around the people of like interest.
Here are a few pictures from the day – I will post more via Picasa albums later when I can get through some of them…
A complete machine shop run by one little steam engine…
That little steam engine that says it can!
Not all the engines are huge either…
From Blackwell, OK… the old power unit from the Zinc Smelter…
Not everything is Steam Engines – but finding older Harley’s than these will be hard to do…
What about a Model T?
Sure would have been easier than the hand crank… steam engine ice cream maker… There was a group making and selling ice cream from steam engines…
Every shape and size available…
And there was an abundance of smoke and popping going on…
Sorry no sound on this one but maybe tomorrow?
And that was about it for my day… manned that gate from 8am to 5pm… and maybe will do it again tomorrow?
WD0AJG