Future Exhibits!

Future Featured Equipment Lines

We would like to announce our planned feature equipment lines for our upcoming shows.  In 2010 we will be featuring "Oddballs & Orphans" tractors and equipment (Cockshutt, Coop, etc) and Novo gas engines.  We hope you'll join us to be a part of our upcoming shows!

GE 44 TON CENTER CAB LOCOMOTIVE

In the fall of 2006, Paxton Verling Steel of Omaha, NE donated a General Electric 44 ton center cab switch engine, builders number 15078, which has been added to our Railroad and Waverly Depot exhibit.  This locomotive was built in 1942 and was the first of nine originally owned by Sheffield Steel in Kansas City.  As with all of our exhibits, we will be working on restoring this locomotive to operating condition so it can be demonstrated during the show.  It is powered by two Caterpillar D17000 series diesel engines (one in each end) for a total of 380 horsepower.

Stationary Steam is Coming to Camp Creek

Another exhibit that we are beginning work on is our new stationary steam exhibit.  The first project for this exhibit is a huge cross compound Corliss steam engine air compressor.  This compressor was donated to the Rural Nebraska Heritage Association and the Camp Creek Threshers about 15 years ago by the Burlington Northern railroad.  The compressor was used in the Burlington Northern repair shops in Havelock, NE.  The engine was built by the Worthington company and was rated at 460 HP and could deliver 3100 cubic feet of air per minute!  At the end of 2001 all 75 yards of concrete had been poured to complete the engine foundation.  Work in reassembling the engine has been continuing and as of the end of 2007 all of the large pieces of the engine have been reassembled, and the engine has been grouted to the concrete base.  Now that all of the heavy lifting work has been completed, work will begin on reassembling all of the smaller pieces and completing the restoration to operating condition.  The engine is pictured below as it was installed in the Havelock shops power plant, and its current state of restoration.

We have also acquired another engine for preservation and display.  The engine pictured below is one of a pair of huge Allis-Chalmers Corliss engines with direct connected generator.  This engine has a 22" bore and a 42" stroke and is capable of generating between 350 and 400 KW of electricity.  Most impressive is the 15 foot diameter flywheel that weighs about 15 tons all by itself!  This engine and another like it were installed at the Hastings, NE Regional Center in about 1916.  The state of Nebraska and the Camp Creek Threshers negotiated for the preservation of these engines when their removal was necessary to accommodate new boilers at the Regional Center.  The removal was a team effort with the Old Trusty Days organization in Clay Center, NE and they will be preserving the other engine at their show.  These are impressive engines that will be great exhibits for both shows.