Big day for big equipment

It was a big day on Friday, Jan. 29 for big equipment. It also was a day that has been a year in the making. The work began when Dusty Welch, president of the Harrison Coal and Reclamation Historical Park, learned about the donation of a Marion 111-M drag line to the park.

The equipment, produced by the Marion Power Shovel Company of Marion, Ohio, had been used at the former 416 Sand and Gravel, where Welch once operated it. The shovel had been sitting unused on that property, which has since been sold to new owners, for the past six years.

“They were produced roughly between 1941 and 1956. There was a total of 370 of them built, and this is one of six that are left in the country,” Welch said.

Many old machines are scrapped after they are no longer needed, so saving them for future generations is important.

“We’re saving as much of this old equipment as we can. To get a good view of the future, we have to stand in the past. You have to learn where these machines came from to understand where equipment is going to go tomorrow,” Welch said.

Welch is thankful for the donation of the Marion 111-M and that the move is finally a reality.

“We’re definitely excited that this is taking place because this is an amazing machine for its time and age,” Welch said. “They can move an amazing amount of material, and people love watching these things work.”

The park also owns another Marion 111-M that was donated to them in the 1990s.

Welch said he was given the opportunity to run a large piece of equipment at the age of 14 and has been addicted ever since.

“It’s definitely exciting to be able to finally save it, give it a good home and hopefully get a lot more years out,” Welch said. “When we fired it up for the first time, it literally fired up like it sat overnight and for the most part worked like it had just sat overnight. They don’t make equipment like they did back in the day.”

The machine was originally purchased by a coal company in New Philadelphia in 1949 and has had various owners over the years.

Volunteers from the HCRHP have been working for the past year at the site on the west side of Goshen Hill Road in New Philadelphia to get the Marion 111-M ready to be transported to the park.

“We had to remove the boom, which was in three sections that are about 35-40 feet long each,” Welch said. “We had to remove the counterweights. There is a total of nine counterweights: three weigh 5,600 pounds and six weigh 4,500 pounds. We drained all the fuel; we pulled all the pins so we could take the machine and pick it up. We had to put a fuel pump on the one engine and just various odds and ends.”

They also ran new airlines among other repairs to get the machine running to move it to a level location to finish the disassembly.

“It’s all-weekend work,” Welch said, adding he and the volunteers who helped him all work full-time jobs during the week.

Companies assisting in the move were Barnhart Crane & Rigging of Canton, which provided the cranes; Howard Bowers Contracting of Steubenville, which provided the truck for the cab; and Canton Towing, which provided the truck to transport the undercarriage.

Welch estimated the move would cost between $15,000 and $16,000.

“That’s with calling in a lot of favors,” Welch said. “I was quoted anywhere between $90,000-$120,000 to move this machine.”

Donations were received from Maple Leaf Demolition of Hinckley, Soehnlen Brothers Sand and Gravel of Beach City, and Keith’s Cars of New Philadelphia, among others.

Welch also credited the volunteers; without their help the cost would have been much higher. All the pieces they removed from the Marion 111-M prior to moving day had already been transported to the park. The large cab and undercarriage were the two remaining pieces that were moved on Saturday.

Once the Marion 111-M reaches the HCRHP, it will undergo a restoration by the volunteers. They hope to have it in operation for their annual open house in September.

The HCRHP has close to 20 machines of its own with about a dozen that are operable, and it has members from all over the United States and the world.

“We actually just sold close to $500 worth of merchandise to a fellow from Sweden,” said Bryan Coulson, a member of the HCRHP Board of Directors.

They met the man at another heavy equipment show, and he was so impressed with the mission of the group that he purchased the memorabilia, which included shirts and hats.

The HCRHP is 100% volunteer based. In addition to its annual fall show, it is planning to add a spring show this year over Memorial Day weekend.

“We’re trying to get some summertime hours that we can have members onsite because we’re getting such a collection established that people are really wanting to come down and see it,” Welch said.

Follow the group’s Facebook page or check its website for updates and information on becoming a member of the park. The open house is similar to a tractor or car show; everyone brings their own equipment, and they spend time digging in the dirt. A flea market and vendors are onsite too.

Many southside New Philadelphia neighbors gathered to watch the move.

“There were a lot of folks down here when we were working on it. They would sit, watch and talk to us. They were really interested in it. They are sad to see it go but glad to see it going to a good home rather than just getting cut up for scrap,” Welch said.