Areas of the Reunion

"The Smile Machine" Carousel

Take a ride on the beautiful, fully-restored antique carousel. Listen to the music of the Military Band Organ and feel the movement of the rocking horses. Pick out your favorite horse and match the crest on its chest with the name on the wall. "The Smile Machine" is powered by a Herschell- Spillman steam engine that dates back over a century.

See the Horses of The Smile Machine Click Here

Antique Cars & Trucks

The antique cars and trucks are a popular attraction at Old Threshers. You will find them cruising around the grounds in beautiful splendor during the Reunion or stop by the car building to take a closer look. The Southeast Iowa Car Club will be on hand to tell you about the internal workings of the autos and how they carefully restored their beauties.

Demonstrations

Take a look at how things were done in the days of old. You will find many different demonstrations on the grounds during the Old Threshers Reunion. The horse area has Horse Powered Treadmill, Horse Powered Threshing, and Horse Harnessing. The Tractor Area has a Corn Sheller in operation, Belt Driven Dynamometer, Baker Fan demonstrations, and Tractor Pulls. The Traction Steam Area balances a Steam engine on Teeterboard, Scale Model Sawmill, a Shingle Mill in operation, and Boiler and Steam Cylinder explanation. The Gas Engine area shows Rock Crushing, and Corn grinding demonstrations. The Log Village has a woodshop and a blacksmith shop demonstrations. Plus many more demonstrations happing all over the grounds.

Drive-A-Tractor

Many people who visit Midwest Old Threshers have never experienced life on a farm. What was once a common way of life is now a memory to only the older visitor. Making its debut at the 2001 Reunion, the exhibit features tractors that have been modified with a kill switch and low-throttle speed and gears. Visitors of all ages can feel what it is like behind the wheel of a tractor. The safety person riding with each visitor can easily reach the kill switch, master clutch, and handbrake, making it a fun and safe experience.

This exhibit is Free to do!

Antique Gas Engines

The large Gas Engine exhibit area has over 600 gas engines on display. See the many different styles, sizes, and uses for these powerful machines. Be sure to stop by and discover the role they played in our history from rock crushing to running washing machines and much more.

Heritage Museums

Take a walk through the Richard Oetken Heritage Museum. See Traction Steam Engines: The Golden Age of Threshing in Iowa, Family Farm House, Women Partners On The Land, Peterson Farm, American Farm Implements, 
Marvin Mill, Changing Seasons – Farmall Grows America, Electricity - Comes To The Farm, Rural Fire House and Gas Station, and Water: Too Little...Too Much

Horses

The Old Threshers Reunion has many horses displaying their incredible might and beauty. Belgians, Percherons, mules, and many other teams display how they were a vital part of farming and working from the day's gone bye. Their strength is shown off daily in the Cavalcade of Power by pulling a variety of old wagons and buggies, by threshing grain, baling hay, shelling corn, and plowing. Be sure to see the horse-powered threshing and sawmill in action. The horse barn is the site for very popular demonstrations like harnessing a team shoeing a horse and much more.

Log Village

Grab a trolley ride down to the Log Village and step back in time. As you stroll through an 1856 village with the Kossuth House, the Cassidy House, the one-room Oak Ridge School, a Sawn-Log Barn, a Public House, and an outhouse. All of the villagers are dressed in period costumes, cooking meals over an open fire, blacksmith demonstrations, candle dipping, children playing games, and making you feel welcome. The villagers are members of the #1846 Explorer Post. You can also check out a medicine man show for all your aches and pains.

Midwest Central Railroad

Take a ride around the 1.25mile-loop around the Reunion Show Grounds. Trains depart from the North Station at the north end of the grounds in the North Village and the MCRR Museum and Education Center north of Heritage Museum B. Round Trip tickets are $4.00 per person (Age 4 and Under Free)

Learn More about the Midwest Central Railroad, visit their website at www.mcrr.org

Midwest Electric Railway

Take a ride to the 1850s Log Village or back to your camper on the Midwest Electric Railway. There are five stops along the 1.25mile loop around the campground. Round Trip tickets are $3.00 per person (Age 6 and Under Free). Tickets can be purchased at the Yarmouth Depot Located South of Museum A.

Learn More about the Midwest Electric Railway

North Village

North Village gives the feeling of the Old West. As you stroll down the street take a look at the Pleasant Lawn School, Center Chapel Church, bank, blacksmith shop, US post office, jail, and quilt shop. But be careful you might be caught up in a gunfight, bank robbery or train hold up from the local gunslingers. Make sure you stop by the saloon for a cold drink and be entertained by the Saloon Singers. But don't forget to buy a pickle on a stick, get some taffy, candy, and souvenirs at the General store before you catch the train out of town.

Printers Hall

The Printers'  Hall exhibit follows a historic timeline of printing from the first time the first settlers crossed the Mississippi. The exhibit includes an 1870s Hand Press, various kinds of platen presses, cylinder presses as well as handset type. Printers' Hall is the home of the "Threshers Bee Newspaper", printed for the first time at the 2006 Reunion.

Stationary Steam

The Power House of Stationary Steam Engines was developed with the purpose of Demonstrating the vital role of steam engines has played in America's workplace. Some of the steam engines in this display were used in locker plants, blacksmith shops, distilleries, and hospitals. The exhibit offers working examples of diesel-powered engines and the Wilkie Machine Tool Exhibit, which is powered by a line shaft from a Peerless steam engine.

Theatre Museum

In a time almost forgotten, troupes of performers criss-crossed rural America presenting repertoire theatre. From the 1850s to the 1950s, five generations reveled in the clean fun and sociable respite offered by these traveling companies. These versatile "troupes" entertained audiences with comedy, farce, Broadway hits, adapted classics and suspenseful mysteries in settings that ranged from small-town opera houses to empty-lot tent theatres.

Years ago Neil & Caroline Schaffner started collecting memorabilia from this era of theatrical history. It was from this "seed" collection and the generosity of the Midwest Old Settlers and Threshers Association, Inc., that this remarkable museum was created in 1973 at the crossroads of the Midwest, in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. Since then, hundreds of troupers and their families have donated artifacts to make this amazing theatrical collection one of the largest of its kind in the United States.

Learn More about the Theatre Museum, visit their website at www.thetheatremuseum.com

Traction Steam Engines

Antique Tractors

Over 1000 antique tractors are on display during Old Threshers Reunion which features a different brand of tractor each year. Tractor pulls, corn shelling and grinding, threshing, veneer mill, baker fans, the dynamometer, and baling demos are just some of the fun activities we have with the tractors during the Reunion.