REEVESVILLE -- For all practical purposes, the tractor was bound for the junk yard. Rusted. Flat tires. Hadn’t run in about four years.

“It was pitiful looking,” said Richie Shuman, 46, owner and operator of Shuman Foods in Reevesville.

Yet Shuman’s sentimental attachment to the tractor – combined with time, money and patience – combined to give the 60-year-old 1948 McCormick International Harvester Model H tractor a second career, retiring from day-to-day general farming purposes to modeling.

It all started when Shuman took a second look at the tractor about two years ago. He was inspired by restored tractors that paraded in Branchville’s annual Raylrode Daze Festivul.

Shuman had fond memories of the tractor’s use on the family chicken farm in rural Dorchester County, and he knew the tractor was the first his father owned.

Thomas “Pete” R. Shuman, 78, Richie’s father, enthusiastically recalled the day when he paid $1,200 for the new tractor from a dealer in Orangeburg.

“Back in that time, it was a pretty good tractor, too,” the elder Shuman said.

“I’ve planted with it, cultivated with it, cut wood with it, ground feed with it. I’ve even ground grits and baled hay with it,” he said, recalling the tractor’s years of agricultural contributions – not to mention 40 years of hauling chicken manure with its front-end loader on the chicken farm.

But after bigger, better and faster tractors came along, the beloved Shuman tractor ended up being parked on the Shuman farm.

“I asked Daddy if I could fix it up and he said I could,” Richie said.

For Richie Shuman, it was a newfound hobby. He’d never restored an old tractor. But after consulting with local mechanics, a paint shop and fellow farmers, he decided to get started.

Fortunately, Pete Shuman had the tractor’s original owner’s manual, which proved helpful when having to order replacement parts as well as with the overall restoration process.

“I’m glad I did it. I just hate that it took so long,” Richie said.

His father said he’s proud of the tractor and his son’s work.

“Compared to what it was, it’s excellent,” the elder Shuman said.

While the tractor is now functional with a new engine and battery, his son said he plans to primarily use the restored machine in community events, such as tractor shows and parades.

“I was trying to put it back in showroom, mint condition,” he said.

The tractor, which was completed on Christmas Eve last year, made its public debut as a participant in this year’s World Grits Festival parade in St. George.

Although the entire Shuman family is proud of the restored tractor, Richie Shuman’s children aren’t all that excited about it, he said.

“I’ve got two girls, ages 19 and 17, and all they’re interested in are cars and boys,” he said, smiling. But he said he appreciates the support of his entire family, especially his wife Brenda.

n T&D Correspondent Martha Rose Brown can be reached at marfawose@aol.com. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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