Recently, the board and staff at the museum undertook efforts to prevent the machine from deteriorating further. This included clearing away the brush and trees around the machine, removing the upper auger that was in contact with a tree trunk, jacking the wheels out of the mud, and moving the back end over to provide the needed clearance to pull it out of the bush. After three days of labour in the summer heat, the thresher was successfully extracted. We will now be examining it to determine whether it should take its place alongside the other threshers at the museum, or if it could add value as an artifact at another institution.

Decades ago, this 1930s John Deere threshing machine was donated to the museum. It was stored on the property but never found its way to the area designated for agricultural implements. Over the years, the trees grew around and against it. The wheels sunk into the mud and the effects of the environment were starting to leave their mark on it. As with all forms of machinery, advancements in technology made these implements obsolete. Those that remain are either housed in museums and the sheds of collectors, or they can be found dotting the prairies as silent monuments to those early days of Canadian agricultural pursuits.