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The
following article was submitted by Traci (Newland) Weston,
the photo's
were provided by Greg Newland. Both are grandchildren of Wilbur Schneider.
A
collection of Olivers…and it all started with a paint job. Wilbur
Schneider, my grandpa, first started his Oliver collection by trading
a paint job on his neighbor’s car for a tractor. The tractor
happened to be a 1935 Oliver Hart-Parr 70. This tractor marked the
first tractor he restored as the start of his collection. He grew up
with Olivers, as his father had always farmed with them. So being around
Oliver tractors was nothing new for him. He then went on to purchase
his first tractor. It was a 1949 Oliver 77. He used this tractor in
the fields to farm with and to this day he still owns it. As the years
went on Wilbur continued to restore Oliver tractors and it wasn’t
long before his only son, John Schneider, started following in his
father’s footsteps. Wilbur did a lot of the mechanical work on
the restorations and his son John did all the painting, as he had that
special touch with a paint sprayer. It didn’t take long for John’s
son, Willie, to get into the action as well. As an FFA project in grade
school, Willie restored a Model 18-27 Hart-Parr with the help of his
dad and grandpa. Between the three of them they now own around 35 restored
Oliver tractors, and the collection keeps on growing! Even to this
day, they still use a number of them on the farm.
Some of their favorites include a 1956 Oliver Super
44 due to its rare sightings
in today’s world and a 1954 Oliver Super 99 because of its size. The most
challenging restoration they have seen to this day is a 1950 Oliver 77 orchard
tractor. The tractors massive amount of sheet metal makes for a difficult restoration,
but this will not stop these boys in their tracks. There is nothing they can’t
tackle as a team.
In 2007 the collection appeared in the Chesaning
Showboat parade with each of Wilbur’s 12 grandkids and their spouses driving a tractor in the parade.
This was not only a special moment for my grandpa to display all of his hard
work, but it was special for each of us grandkids as we got to see how proud
our grandpa was to see all of us together sharing in something he had so much
pride in. It’s a moment we will never forget.
There are also several family members that participate
in tractor pulling. I have always heard stories about my grandpa pulling
back in the day, but have
never actually witnessed it as he hung up that hat long ago. From what I
hear he was quite the puller and actually started pulling with the
first tractor
he
had ever purchased to work on his farm, a 1949 Oliver 77. Now, instead of
pulling, he gets to sit in the stands and cheer on his family, as they
all pull Olivers.
The pulling members of his family include his son John, Son-in-Law Terry
Newland and several grandchildren and their spouses including Willie
Schneider, Missy
Schneider, Charlene Schneider, Brian Talbot, Steven Korf, Traci Weston, Greg
Newland, & Luke Newland. We are even putting that Oliver pride into the youngest
of the family, Wilbur’s great grandchildren who participate in the
peddle pull out at the Old Gas Show Grounds which include Johnny Talbot,
Ellie Talbot,
Issac Beougher, and Adam Weston.
Every year, we as a family, look forward to the Mid
Michigan Old Gas Tractor Show held in Oakley, MI. It is a time where
we can all get together, see
the Oliver collection in its entirety, and watch how my grandpa lights
up to tell
a stranger walking by about his tractors. He takes so much pride in what
he; his son John and grandson Willie have created. It is literally a collection
of Olivers!
(Click on photos to enlarge)
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