Family Relics Saved From Scrap - John Deere RW "Cut Harrow", 44H Plow, VanBrunt Drill, #70 Planters

This past winter, I dragged a few more relics from my late grandfather's farming days out of the weeds, saving them from potentially being scrapped or sold. These were some of the early implements he used as far back as 1951, when he purchased the farm and his first tractor, a John Deere A, to convert 105 acres of cow pasture into fertile vegetable fields. He spent the next two decades using these rugged hunks of iron to work his fields, and build his reputation among the South Jersey vegetable grower community. His two favorite tractors weren't the only items he kept when he sold the farm - he hung onto some of the implements they pulled as well.

These include an 8-foot John Deere RW disk (or "cut harrow" as we South Jerseyans call it), a model 44H hydraulic 2-16 plow, a VanBrunt model B grain drill (which he used for seeding cover crops), and a set of model 70 planter row units (plus a Cole Planet Jr. row unit), which he used for soybeans/wheat and also occasionally for peas and tomatoes. Each of these implements were passed on to my uncle for his hobby farming and nursery operation, and the drill and planter units were used up until probably 20 years ago before being parked in the hedgerow with the plow and disk. My uncle was looking to find new homes for these implements that hadn't been used in a long time, as he is preparing to downsize and is clearing his property. I would like to hang onto these implements for my future homestead (to be restored and used behind the John Deere 60 someday), so I offered to take them off his hands.

I cleared out the old farm lane next to my parents' house and towed the bigger units each 2.5 miles down the road to their new temporary resting place - not ideal to keep them outside, but it's the best I can do for now until I have the time, money, and space to restore them. That 44H plow will look great at plow days behind the 60 someday, as will the disk (although that disk broke the 60 many years ago...let's hope it doesn't happen again!)