Snapshot of a turn of the century threshing gang
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- Published on Thursday, July 21, 2016
Photo courtesy of the Manitoba Agricultural Museum. A 1905 photo of the Sinclair Brown threshing gang, taken by Osborne Photo.
Submitted Article
Manitoba Agricultural Museum
In 1905, Sinclair Brown arranged for Osborne Photo to take a photograph of his threshing crew, which is the photo seen here. Unfortunately, when the photo was donated to the Manitoba Agricultural Museum, no information accompanied the photo so we have no idea who the men seen in the photo are or where Sinclair Brown was operating. However, the Manitoba Historical Society lists A. Osborne as being a photographer in Boissevain. So it may well be Sinclair Brown was operating in the Boissevain area.
The man on the left of the photograph is the engineer on the steam engine, judging from the leather gloves with gauntlets and the long spouted oil can he is equipped with. While the separator man would also be equipped with an oil can, it is doubtful the separator man would be wearing such gloves as he would not need such protection. The engine man would be working around a hot boiler with perhaps steam escaping from valve packing and so would be in need of such gloves. It is possible that the man on the left is Sinclair Brown, as often the owner of a steam engine in those days was also the engineer and ran the associated threshing gang. However, it is likely we will never know for sure which person in the photo was Sinclair Brown.
On close examination of the photo, two small children are visible above the man sitting on the ground on the left. As they have moved during the taking of this glass plate photo, they are somewhat blurred. Their position is somewhat telling, as one would think they would stay close to their parents, so it is quite possible the fifth man from the left is their father, as they are standing in front of him. One would think that men on a threshing gang would not have their small children along with them and so it could be the man is the owner of the farm and has hired Sinclair Brown to custom thrash for him.
Of note is the pitch fork on the right of the photo, notably its handle. It is longer and thinner than the pitch forks that one buys today. The increased length would make it easier to load sheaf wagons from the ground and reduce the need to move around on the sheaf weapon when pitching sheaves into the thresher. The thinner handle is both a comment on the higher quality of wood available at the time, plus the realization that a thinner handle meant less weight and weight would count in a long day of pitching sheaves. A veteran farmer pointed out that an experienced sheaf pitcher waxed the handle to make it slide in the hands easier and filed the forge marks out of the tines as well as sharpened the points, all to reduce resistance.
In examining the photo, it is apparent that most of the men on the crew are fairly young men with at least three being little more than boys. It is also interesting to note that two neck ties are visible! The men are wearing a variety of head gear, though the general absence of wide brimmed straw hats is interesting. One would have thought such a hat would have been popular, as it would have shaded the head more and been cooler to wear in the day. But then, threshing gangs would have little opportunity to visit a town to obtain hats, clothing and other items. So they wore what they came to the Prairies with.
There was a huge need for men on threshing gangs in the fall and men travelled to the west from Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes to work the fall harvest. While many stayed, most returned to their home provinces, having made money while seeing some of the country. Generally, the crew gives the impression of being a pretty salty bunch, particularly the engineer with his handle bar mustache and bowler hat. But then, running a threshing crew was no Sunday school outing.
Harvesting Hope: A World Record to Help the Hungry, a joint project between the Canadian Foodgrains Bank and the Manitoba Agricultural Museum is in the last stages of preparation. On Sunday, July 31 during the 2016 Threshermen’s Reunion, Harvesting Hope will see 500 volunteers from 100 Canadian communities set a new world record for the largest number of antique threshing machines in operation at one time. One hundred and twenty-five threshing machines from the early 20th century will operate simultaneously and continuously for at least 15 minutes to create the world’s largest pioneer harvest. The antique threshing machines will be powered by steam engines and early gas tractors.
The 2016 Threshermen’s Reunion and Stampede is also in the final stage of preparation with a great line of activities and events scheduled, including historical demonstrations, machinery parades, the Clydesdale Classic, petting zoo, music and more.
The Manitoba Agricultural Museum is open year round and operates a website at http://ag-museum.mb.ca/ which can provide visitors with information on Museum and the Reunion, including location and hours of operation. Harvesting Hope operates a website at http://www.harvestinghope.ca.
