Hard-core John Deere enthusiasts are converging on the Quad Cities this (Tuesday) morning for the start of a two-day memorabilia collectors’ conference. Brian Holst, manager of the John Deere Collectors Center, says he’s expecting attendees from as far away as Florida, California and Alaska.
The floor will be open to vendors to buy, sell and trade or just display their memorabilia, in a range of areas like tools, pocket ledgers, employee give-aways. Holst says a host of seminars will be offered, starting at 9 A.M.Seminar topics include an expert on pocket ledgers, another workshop will focus on paper memorabilia and sales literature, and then Deere trademark officials will talk about the importance of protecting the corporate trademark and identity.
Holst says some people may not know about pocket ledgers, which he says for decades were almost as valuable to a farmer as his tractor. The ledger had blank pages where a farmer could record his sales of grain, livestock, eggs and milk, crop rotation, then there was sales literature for the year’s new John Deere products, then weights and measures, telling things like how many pounds are in a ton.
Collectors have found these ledgers dating back to 1887 though it’s thought they predate the Civil War. The event runs through Wednesday at the collectors center in Moline, Illinois. For more information, surf to “www.JohnDeereCollectorsCenter.com” or call (800) 240-5265.