Pat, his brother Myron, and a friend, Ed Sass, also used the Oil Pull for sawing lumber as well as shredding corn and threshing. When Pat died in 1967, he had willed the tractor to Merlin L. Trumble Jr. In 1972, it was taken to the Trumble Homestead on Division Road where Lester Trumble lives now (1990). In 1981, it was exhibited at the Richmond "Good Old Days" fair. Merlin died in December of 1981 and had willed the tractor to the St. Clair County Farm Museum in Goodells, Michigan.
Ken Dickenson and Harry Michaels contacted Lester Trumble and together with Art Kuney moved the tractor to the Museum in 1985.
In the fall of 1990, a new machine shed (the "Mechanic's Barn") was built near the other Farm Museum buildings to house the Oil Pull, the A.D. Baker steam engine and a threshing machine.
We at the Museum extend a special thank you to Mrs. Trumble for the plaque and her help in tracing the history of this Rumley Oil Pull Tractor and to Avery Long, Stanley Simpson, and Lester Trumble for Providing the information.
Restoration of the Oil Pull began in the spring of 1987 and was completed in May of 1990. The Trumble family had a brass plaque made to commemorate the donation of the tractor to the Museum. It was presented to the Museum by Mrs. Merlin Trumble in 1989 and was mounted on the tractor during the Museum's 1990 Threshing Bee with both Mrs. Trumble and Lester present. Afterward Lester rode the Oil Pull in the first parade to be run as part of the Threshing Bee show.
area's bridges. The tractor was taken to Stanley's farm and belted to a sawmill out in the woods. Frank, "Happy", and John Lewis sawed lumber with the Oil Pull for a couple of years, then Frank replaced it with a Hart-Parr tractor purchased from James Keegan of Emmett, Michigan. He sold the Oil Pull to Francis "Pat" Trunble in about 1951. Frank and "Happy" drove it to Pat's home on Division Road near St. Clair, Michigan, passing over the Wadhams Road Bridge on the way. Frank's wife, Flossie, packed a lunch for them and one of Frank's daughters drove down to bring them home.
Charles Long of Lexington, Michigan purchased this tractor new and used it for threshing grain and beans and for sawing lumber. His sawmill was operated continuously throughout the year except for threshing and deer seasons.
In the late 1940's, Stanley Simpson and his brother George of North Street, Michigan hauled logs to Charlie Long's sawmill to be sawed into lumber. A short time later, their dad, Frank J. Simpson bought the Oil Pull from Charlie. Frank and a hired man, Ed "Happy" Miller drove it to its new home. They had to choose their route carefully as the tractor was too heavy for some of the
The St. Clair County Farm Museum's 1922 Rumley Oil Pull Tractor
Manufacturer: Rumley
Year of manufacture: 1922
Serial number: 2358
Model: G
Horsepower: 20hp at the drawbar, 40hp at the belt pulley (20-40)
