LE SUER, Minn. —While last year’s Pioneer Power Swap Meet was canceled, the event was back in top form this year.

Many vendors had little stoves they used to keep warm and some to cook with.  Other vendors had fire pits offering warmth during the cool weekend show.

This swap meet that is a flea market mixture offers up crafts, folk art, toys, farm tools, parts, a few tractors, and a whole lot of everything in between.  Several different groups had raffle tractors on display, like the Ford offered for raffle by the Root River Antique club of Spring Valley, Minn.  

Some groups used this event as a chance for their annual meetings like the Spark Plug Collectors of America, Inc. (SPCOA).  This is a not-for-profit international organization founded by Bill Bond of Ann Arbor, Mich., in 1975. The club is dedicated to the promotion of spark plug collecting.  Mike and Janet Healy are members of the club. They hail from Fulton, Mo., and Mike said they meet four times a year and meet every year at the Le Sueur show.  “We have a about 250 members from almost every state and some are international.  We have a Facebook page and a website www.spcoa.net.”

The club also has its own magazine, The Ignitor which comes out four times a year. On their website page they explained the history of the spark plug as a solution to the problem with early flame and ignitor. Mike showed off a variety of spark plugs.  He said that collectors love them due to the “uniqueness, designs, graphics and logos.”

One vendor ay the show had a cool old pedal car that appeared to be a version of a Mack truck another had a fun Murray pedal tractor. While farm toys were for sale at many booths, one vendor had an amazing, rare Buddy L cement mixer on display and a salesman sample harrow as well.  He thought it might be an International Harvester salesman sample, but he was not sure.

Not all items for sale were toys or models, some were antique farm equipment like The Clipper fanning mill. A Hoover potato planter and an old original potato digger were also for sale. One of the nicest antique equipment pieces was a New Idea Easy Way hay loader.  A cool corn sheller was for sale and there was also a beautiful antique wooden scythe and cradle harvest tool. There was even a beautiful old wooden water tank!

Part of the fun was watching the bigger pieces being moved and picked up and delivered to buyers.  Loaders picked up heavy pieces of equipment and entrepreneurial young men and women had carts with signs saying, “Will haul” and they took items to cars and trucks for avid buyers that were glad to be at an outside event after the long winter months.

A real showstopper was a 1920s era Ford Model T truck for sale in what appeared to be original condition.  A few restored tractors like a John Deere A and an Allis Chalmers WD 45 were for sale.

Several windmill parts and one whole windmill was also on display and for sale.  One beautiful horse weathervane was atop a windmill tower.

Yard art and a creative take on bird houses were also part of the event.  One artist was creating birdhouses with tools as part of the house mix. Shovels, springs, plow shares and more have turned into yard art folk art.

Things are booming in Le Sueur, mark your calendars for August 27-29 at the Pioneer Power Grounds for the 48th annual Pioneer Power Show.  Log onto www.pioneerpowershow.com  for more information.