AIMA member sites use tools representative of their time and place to harvest grains. The presenters at Firestone Farm in Greenfield Village, The Henry Ford, Dearborn, Michigan, use a Johnston Harvesting Company Self-Rake reaper to cut Turkey Red Wheat. The farm interprets the birthplace of Harvey Firestone, and was moved to Greenfield Village from Columbiana County, Ohio in the early 1980s. This reaper represents the type of machinery that Harvey and his brothers may have seen (or may have operated) on their family farm.
Dear Deb, just to reply to this. Would you expect people (well, the serious ones) who reply to say, ah, yes, we too use a self-rake reaper, but on…. another sort of wheat, etc? Or would you expect them perhaps to comment on the harness, clothing?
I feel this is the spot to post the couple of “unknown unknowns” that Ollie sent round some time ago. If there was an definitve answer on that, I did not see the follow-up. Mystery objects seem to me to be still a good attraction.
More later, all best, C
Please feel free to share whatever furthers the conversation about other reapers in use at other open-air or agricultural museums, other types of grain cultivated, draw attention to upcoming threshing events. Thank you for sharing.