(The 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive toured northwestern Wayne County on Labor Day, September 7. Photo by Zach Lewis.)
(During the 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive, Amanda White of Cisne was recognized for participating in all 18 tractor drives. Photo by Doug Anderson.)
(Carson Kissner from Wayne City was recognized as driving the oldest tractor in the 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive. Kissner drove a 1940 Farmall M. Photo by Doug Anderson.)
(Rod Aman from St. Charles, MO was the driver who had driven the furthest to participate in the Wayne County Tractor Drive. Rob drove 160 miles and drove a 1962 Farmall 560 in the drive.)
(The Youngest Driver Award at the 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive was presented to 17-year-old Anna Taylor from Geff, IL who drove a 1951 Ford 8N. Photo by Doug Anderson.)
(During the 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive, the oldest driver went to 84-year-old Tom Kuczynski from Harrisburg, IL who drove a 1955 International 400. Photo by Doug Anderson.)
(The winner of the Most Original Unrestored Tractor at the 2026 Wayne County Tractor Drive was Robert Annis of Ellery, IL. Robert drove an unrestored 1960 Minneapolis Moline 5 Star. Photo by Doug Anderson.)
The 18th Annual Wayne County Tractor Drive was held on Labor Day, September 7th. This year’s drive took participants through the northwestern area of the county, exploring some previously visited areas, but also extended west into a few new areas as well. 39 tractors participated in this year’s event.
Tractors departed from Dagg Auction, northwest of Orchardville. Tractors headed south and made their first stop at Frey Farms Produce. The Frey Family updated drivers on the pumpkin harvest and what has changed since the tractors’ last visit around 10 years ago. Tractors continued south and west, making their next stop at Papertown Ag. Tractors made their way west into Jefferson County, where they stopped for lunch at Twelve Pines Farms in rural Bluford. The wedding venue is owned by Chris and Nique Scarbrough. Following lunch, tractors headed back east and made one more stop at Nutrien Ag Solutions plant south of Orchardville. Drivers enjoyed homemade ice cream while touring Nutrien’s recently completed seed treatment shed.
The Earl Smith Memorial Award for the oldest driver went to 84-year-old Tom Kuczynski from Harrisburg, IL who drove a 1955 International 400. The Youngest Driver Award was presented to 17-year-old Anna Taylor from Geff, IL who drove a 1951 Ford 8N. The Oldest Tractor Award was presented to Carson Kissner from Wayne City, IL who drove a 1940 Farmall M. The winner of the Most Original Unrestored Tractor was Robert Annis of Ellery, IL. Robert drove an unrestored 1960 Minneapolis Moline 5 Star. Amanda White of Cisne, IL was recognized as the driver who has participated in the most tractor drives. Amanda has driven in all 18 drives. Amanda drove a 1956 Ford 860. Finally, Rod Aman from St. Charles, MO was the driver who had driven the furthest to the event. Rod drove 160 miles and drove a 1962 Farmall 560. All of the winners received a 1/16 scale toy tractor, sponsored by H&R Agri-Power in McLeansboro.
The Wayne County Farm Bureau would like to thank Sheila Walker for taking hundreds of pictures of this year’s event (search for Sheila’s pictures on Facebook). They would like to thank their friends at Dagg Auction, Frey Farms, Papertown Ag, Nutrien Ag Solutions, and Twelve Pines Farms for their hospitality, Matt and Jake Kinney for serving up another amazing meal. Finally, the Farm Bureau would like to thank the drivers, volunteers, staff, and their families for participating in this year’s Wayne County Tractor Drive.
Pictures from the event, including all of the driver photos, are available on the Wayne County Farm Bureau Facebook Page.