By CINDY LADAGE
Illinois Correspondent

WAKARUSA, Ind. — One Man, 452 Tractors was the title for this unique auction from June 21-23, for which Melvin Schrock had accumulated a collection of tractors and planned it as a collector event.

The only thing for which Schrock did not plan was that he would not be there to enjoy seeing his friends and family together for this celebration and sale.

His family said Schrock was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2000. He died on Oct. 9, 2006, while his auction was still in its planning stages.

“My father wanted to create an event,” said Schrock’s oldest son, David.

“This was in his plans to carry out. He chose the right auctioneer to carry out his vision.”

“We were honored by the Schrock family to conduct this auction,” said company CEO Kurt Aumann. “It will be talked about for years to come. This was not just an auction, but an event.”

This sale included a few truly rare tractors, such as a Minneapolis Moline UDLX Comfort Tractor, which sold for $155,000 and will be going to Texas.

A few other unique tractors were also auctioned – such as the Huber Super 4 1530 selling for $47,500, the McCormick-Deering O4 for $28,000, the Minneapolis Moline 602 Hi-crop for $33,000 and one Moline Universal for $39,000, while another brought $9,000.

The auction served the exact purpose Schrock intended, bringing together a crowd estimated by the Wakarusa Police Department to be around 4,000 people. With 2,100 registered bidders and visitors from 34 states and Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, the auction was covered by local television stations as well as three area newspapers.

While farming was Schrock’s first occupation, he followed other pursuits. He and his wife, Ruth Ann, owned and operated a couple restaurants. To further support the family, Schrock would deliver motor coach homes.

He realized there was a better way to provide this service, so he started a company with two partners, Horizon Transport. Family members said Schrock’s tractor collection grew as Horizon Transport grew.

For the Schrock family, the auction was a way to say goodbye.
“I wrote a book, 50 Years With My Dear Husband,” said Ruth Ann Schrock. “I wrote it to portray his character. It is a simple book, with our 50th wedding anniversary picture on the front.”

Anyone who bought a tractor at the auction received a complimentary copy of her book. The book itself was available for $5, with the money going to charity.

Ruth Ann said her husband began collecting in 1989. His first purchases were a Farmall Super C and Minneapolis Moline Jet Star tractor, which he bought from his father, Menno Schrock’s, estate. The elder Schrock’s sale proved to be a bit humorous when David realized he and his father were bidding on the same tractor.
“Dad came up to me and said, ‘Do you know who you are bidding against?’” David explained.

“Until that time, I had no idea he was interested in old tractors.”
Ruth Ann wasn’t surprised that David didn’t know his father was bidding.

“He had a way of bidding that no one knew he was doing it by raising his eyebrow or such,” Ruth Ann said.

She said this was the beginning of a collecting hobby that would span years.

Once, she heard Schrock tell someone in the office that he wanted to buy 100 tractors.

She soon saw that number come and go.

In fact, one day when she reminded him that he had more than 300 tractors, he disagreed.

Since she was the bookkeeper, she was able to tell him just how many he did have.

His response, according to Ruth Ann, was “Anyone that knows exactly how many tractors they have, don’t have very many.”
Ruth Ann did try to divert Schrock’s spending. “I tried to get him to buy farm ground so he wouldn’t buy as many tractors,” she said.
“Big mistake. Farm or farmette, if it had barn, shed or chicken house, it was soon filled with farm tractors.

“He always had another tractor he wanted. He had a lot of rare ones; Minneapolis Molines were his favorites.”

David said Schrock’s MM UDLX was his favorite collecting tractor.
Besides being a tribute to Schrock, the auction was also to honor his son, Delton, who passed away at the age of 40 from a brain hemorrhage.

Trains were Delton’s passion, and a 15-inch gauge train patterned after the Norfolk Southern line, along with the tracks and station, were also auctioned off.

“After he passed away, we lost interest,” Ruth Ann said.
According to Aumann Auctions, the train sold in one unit for $108,000. It will be going to a farm in Arkansas.
Not everything at the auction was for sale.

One corner of the show was filled with the 1964 MM602 with which Melvin Schrock loved to farm, his 1967 Gleaner Model E and his 1962 Oliver 660 gas. These tractors were purchased new by Melvin and now belong to David.

“I restored those tractors in memory of Daddy,” he said.
Auction results may be viewed online at www.aumannauction.com