Faron Wahl, Manager.

Here we go…. we’re about ready to roll with the 57th rendition of our annual Steam Threshing Jamboree. Anticipation builds all year for this, our founding event. And we believe you won’t leave disappointed!

Taking center stage will be our feature tractor this year, coming to us in the form of the JI Case Collectors’ Summer Show. A company full of interesting history, this manufacturer produced equipment that has dotted the rural plains of South Dakota for decades. Over the years you didn’t have to travel far, with any watchful eye at all, to see Case equipment in action.

Begun as a humble start-up producer of threshers by Jerome I. Case in the 1840’s, this company reorganized several times as it grew and became firmly established. Fast forward to the late 20th Century when Case’s corporate parent purchased the International Harvester ag equipment division, and the now-ubiquitous Case IH equipment line was formed.

But as always, we’re not shy about the exhibition of all brands and colors of agricultural machines, and you’ll see nearly every firm’s story represented somewhere on our grounds. It’s hard to beat the fabric of tractor backgrounds woven together for a few days here as a wonderful mixed congregation of equipment comes together to celebrate ag history. So much fun.

We’ll have ready all the traditional staples folks have come to expect from this major show. There’ll be threshing in several forms, including rarely demonstrated horse threshing. Add to that a wagon train, tractor drive, sawmill and equipment demonstrations, free musical entertainment, daily parades, historic buildings, train rides and a dinner train, carousel rides, tractor pulls, a flea market, plus lots of food, and you’ve got a recipe worth indulging each day.

As we move into Jamboree week, even our seemingly never-ending tough weather cycle seems to be tracking in our favor, with forecasts showing few chances for rain and an avoidance of any intense heat. Both will be welcomed, as they would any year, but right now we’re extra thankful for that outlook.

There’s much to see and celebrate regarding the history of our rural South Dakota pioneers, and we’ll be the epicenter of that theme once we kick things off Thursday afternoon. It’ll be a great time. Please join us!