For a good time in early July, hitch your wagon to one of the old-timey tractors that will gather at the Denton FarmPark in rural southeastern Davidson County, N.C., for the annual Southeast Old Threshers Reunion.
A huge tractor parade on July 1 is followed by a five-day festival with nonstop action from morning to night. More than 1,000 tractors will gather daily on Tractors Row. Here, farm families will renew old friendships and kindle new relationships with first-timers who want to experience life down on the farm.
It’s a really big deal, as the Denton event attracts nearly 60,000 people who come from all sections of the country.
The idea for the Denton FarmPark was hatched in 1970 by farmer Brown Loflin. It started as a fundraiser for a local rescue squad. Loflin had a number of hobbies, and one was flying airplanes.
He and Howard Latham were co-owners of an airplane. They decided to get a few other pilots to join them and offer airplane rides at the grass-field Denton airport on July 4, 1970. Included in the ticket price was a meal of chicken pie and green beans. People loved it.
As the lines grew longer each year, Loflin added a demonstration of wheat threshing “to ease the impatience of people waiting for the plane ride.” He began hearing from collectors of antique farm machinery who wanted a place to put their collections on display.
The focus of Loflin’s annual event shifted away from airplane rides in 1980 to concentrate on threshers, tractors and other equipment used in the agricultural world.
A thresher is a piece of farm equipment that separates grain seed from the stalks and husks. It does so by beating the plant to make the seeds fall out. Mechanization of this process removed a substantial amount of drudgery from farm labor. The first threshing machine was invented circa 1786 by the Scottish engineer Andrew Meikle.
He
and his wife, Ruby Loflin, converted the airport property into the Denton
FarmPark, and the Southeast Old Threshers Reunion was christened. The Loflins started
adding new “attractions” that were consistent with the Americana theme – an old
farmhouse, machine shop, craft barn, general store, an old country church, post
office, service station, blacksmith shop, radio museum, doll museum and grist
mill.
Today, multi-purpose exhibition buildings, a music pavilion, food and beverage service stations and restroom facilities make the property a true “event center.”
In 1982, the Handy Dandy Railroad began operation, making a 1.5-mile loop around the 170-acre park. Cowboys ride the train to assure that a group of bandits roaming through the woods doesn’t rob the train.
Additionally,
demonstrations occur all around the park to show people how things work. Musical
performances are offered daily. This year’s lineup of artists: Nu-Blu; Caroline
Owens (shown below); Jack and David Reid; Mountain Highway; Jason Crabb; Karen Peck & New
River; Just a Lil Grace; Almost Country Revival Band; and Rick Alviti – the
Ultimate Elvis Tribute.
Hundreds
of vendors will have booths. Camping is available on site. Children’s activities include a
petting zoo and pony rides. Fireworks are scheduled for July 6th at 9 p.m.
Brown Loflin died in 2019, but his wife, Ruby Loflin continues to carry on the family business, assisted by her children, Karen Loflin Miller and Keith Loflin. The Denton festival has grown into the nation’s fifth largest event of its kind.
Visitors are encouraged to also spend some time at nearby High Rock Lake, which is Davidson County’s prime recreational destination. The reservoir along the Yadkin River is one of North Carolina’s largest lakes.
The Loflin family invites people to return to the Denton FarmPark for the Christmas season and climb aboard the “Country Christmas Train” to view the extensive holiday lights display.
Magically, during the yuletide season, Tractor Row is transformed into Candy Cane Lane.
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