Bringing home a piece of history – an auction find.

Harold Steele is a special man. This World War II veteran that served in the 3rd Army under General Patton and is a former President of the Illinois Farm Bureau for years decided to downsize his immense agricultural collection. Yesterday, February 19, 2017, was the second of three auctions. The last auction will take place on June 10, 2017 at Rediger Auction in Wyanet, Illinois.

Two years ago, Harold opened up his house and collection to Keith and I and we were able to visit with Harold and see all his amazing treasures. At yesterday’s auction, we bought one of them, a goat wagon. Harold told us after we bought it. that when he was serving in Germany in WWII, that he saw young children using goat wagons to carry containers full of milk. Sometimes he said, a dog would be pulling the cart. “This is one my favorites,” Harold said about the goat wagon.

He thought that the cart was probably at least 100 years old and may have come from Pennsylvania where he found several antiques while serving both the Reagan and Bush administrations.

The goat wagon was only one of the items that we would have loved to bring home from Harold’s collection. “I collect things that are real,” Harold had told us in the interview two years ago.

We were thrilled to bring home a special piece from a special man’s collection.