Hesston Steam And Power Show

56th. Annual Hesston Steam & Power Show 2012 Four BIG days! August 1, September 1st, 2nd and 3rd (Labor Day). The show begins at 10:00 am and closes at 5:00 pm CDT Steam Train Rides on 3 railroads (including our 1929 logging locomotive) Steam Tractor Demos Operating Steam-Powered Saw Mill and Steam Crane Functioning Steam Powered Electric Generating Plant County Fair Style Food Stands Labor Day Flea Market Much Much More! ADMISSION to the grounds is $5 for adults. Children 12 and under are free. TRAIN FARES are $5 for adults and $3.00 for kids 12 and under. FRIDAY is Senior Day with half-price rides for all seniors!

Who says life has to be harried and expensive? Just as steam power reminds us of a simpler time, families can recapture it this Labor Day weekend. It will be alive, in action – and less than a gas tank away – at the Hesston Steam Museum! Where huge locomotives pull trains through the woods, huge cranes load logs on a saw mill with a 60" blade and you can take a step back to a simpler way of life. Ride, and experience our time machines. Everyone’s invited for the Hesston Steam Museum’s 54th Annual Hesston Steam & Power Show – conveniently located near Chicago, Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan.	Vintage Steam Powered Tractors from the turn of the 19th century will be operating.
There’s education and entertainment for the whole family with steam train rides as well as turn-of-the-century demonstrations of steam power. These include a 1900’s train depot, a steam-powered saw mill (cutting logs into lumber!), LaPorte County Courthouse's first electric generator plant, steam tractors and a 1929 67 ton LOGGING LOCOMOTIVE – restored and now in its third year of active service. This is a must see! There are not just one but THREE railroads to ride, from quarter scale size to 1/8 scale all are steam power iron horses. Find out what a steam tractor is, and see farming equipment from days gone by.	Our steam powered saw mill will be in operation to show how it was done before electricity was invented.
There’s still more for the senses as well. Visitors can sample traditional festival treats or munch on popcorn from a steam-powered popcorn machine! A Labor Day flea market also offers everything from antiques and railroad memorabilia to arts and crafts. Food also is available at the museum’s Whistle Stop café. Visit the Depot Store, Hesston Steam Museum's shop where toys and books will keep your little engineers' imagination chugging along after your visit.	Built in 1929, our 67 ton "Shay" logging locomotive will be out giving rides on our 2.5 mile narrow gauge railroad.
Several steam powered "stationary" engines will be in operation including an Allis-Chalmers "Corliss" valve steam engine and a Smith, Myers & Schnier slide-valve engine, manufactured in Cincinnati, Ohio. Our light plant was built in 1909 by the Western Electric company. It produces 40KW direct current and powered by a 50-horsepower Skinner steam engine built in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Join us at our "Parade of Power" as steaming giants pass in review. Behold a sight seldom seen in this century. You won't believe your eyes as these powerful beasts of burden wind there way around our exhibit grounds to the delight of young and old.
Built in Germany in 1938 by the Orenstein & Koppel company, this 18 ton locomotive is one of several "narrow gauge" steam locomotives available for service. Our "O&K" locomotive survived World War II and was used in East Germany until the 1960s when it was acquired by the Hesston Steam Museum.
Our 2 foot gauge Czechoslovakian locomotive (green engine on the right) was constructed in 1940 prior to the German invasion of that country during WWII. It remained unused until purchased by a collector in California. It came to Hesston in 1988 and was fired for the first time here at Hesston by our volunteer staff.