By
Cable
The Wheel Horse Collector’s Club had its first meeting June 5th, 1999. At first Don, Cindy, and Jeff Kane intended this small group to meet at their home but the meeting was moved to South Mountain Fair grounds, Arendtsville, PA, when the anticipated group size increased.
What started out as Don and Jeff Kane’s father-son hobby soon turned into an effort to start a Wheel Horse garden tractor restorers’ club. This gathering was the first in the country exclusively for Wheel Horse products. A total of sixty Wheel Horses were present and about forty-nine people including wives and children. People from Florida, Connecticut, Alabama, Maryland, Minnesota, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, and Indiana attended.
The Toro Corporation supported the event in several ways including supplying door prizes. Ed Cole of Toro Corporation, brought a number of Wheel Horse branded items and everyone who attended to the end got something. During later shows, these items went into the raffle. Ed said, "I think a hat was passed around to help the Kane's with all the expenses they had, as they bought everything out of their pocket. I went back and got a check from Toro to cover the expense. This continued for several years until the club became self-sustaining. Toro also helped in later years by covering all/half the cost of hats sold at the show."
Forty-nine of Ed Cole's photos of the meeting are at:
