Gathering of the Green
This past week my wife and I headed to Davenport, Iowa, for the 2026 Gathering of the Green. I have been to 3 Classic Green Shows but this was my first Gathering of the Green show. It was held at the River Center, which was a great venue. The Classic Green Shows I have attended are in the summer and at large venues, Fairgrounds etc. where their can be a large display of tractors and implements. The Gathering is held on even numbered years and is in March and has been held in Davenport.
The Gathering features many sessions on different tractors and implements, toys, how to fix mechanical issues and many other things John Deere related. They even have some for the ladies! Other great features include a great vendor area with parts, manuals, collectibles, and simply lots of John Deere ‘Goodies.” I did a lot of shopping, looking and talking!
My good John Deere friend, Don Dufner of Buxton, ND, was there with a table of parts. He and his son, Dan, also gave a presentation on farming with Two Cylinder tractors and highlighted some of Don’s tractor collection. It was a great presentation! I could go on here but, I also attended some other great sessions.
There was one on the Model B, presented by unstyled B expert, Bruce Johnson. Another was on probably my favorite tractor, the model R. This one was led by Ethan Byrum from Indiana. I also attended two sessions about the model G. One was a beginners course and the other was more advanced and was centered around discussion and audience input on the subject of Gs.The presenters of this session were Jamie and Jackie Bell, husband and wife, from Tennessee, as well as Chris Boyens from Bettendorf, Iowa, and another gentleman(whose name I did not catch.) These were two great sessions digging into the history of the G, another of my favorites!
The other session I attended was probably the least on my list of tractors I like but the presenter of this one was Dan Price of Waverly, Iowa. I have me Dan on several occasions and is great guys so I figured I would go learn about the H John Deere from Dan-his personal area of expertise!
The H John Deere is the smallest tractor manufactured at the Waterloo Factory. It was manufactured from 1939-1947. The John Deere line-up at this time included the A, B, D, and G. All substantially bigger than the H. Smaller farmers were looking for a small tractor as well as larger farmers possibly needing a little tractor to help out. It was the first tractor John Deere made with live power lift(Not full live hydraulics.)
I thought he would tell me the model B that I had heard so much about but, I asked my dad one time what his favorite tractor was and he surprised me by saying the H! They had an H with a single from wheel. HIs biggest bragging point was haw great it was to mow hay with. I have never driven an H John Deere but thanks to Dan Price and my dad……I think I would like one!
How about a little tractor trivia.
1. The belt pulley ran backwards on a model H, why?
2. In 1947 what was the price of a new H?
A)$550 B) $600 C) $650 D) $700
3. How many forward speeds did a model H have.
A)3 speeds B) 4 speeds C) 5 speeds D) 6 speeds
4. How many drawbar horsepower does an H have?
10hp B) 12hp C) 14hp D) 15hp
5. Was the model H ever made in an “unstyled” version?
Answers: 1. It runs off the cam shaft, not the crankshaft. 2. C. $650 3. 3 speeds 4. B. 12hp 5. No, although some of the experimental models were made in an unstyled form.
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Eric Mickelson
Green Magazine
RIchard's Publishing
Oklee, MN 56742
218-791-9157