Old Threshers

Old Threshers officially started in 1950 but a small group of them met a couple years before that. Growing up in Mt. Pleasant meant I was involved in a number of different ways. In the fifties the engines burned coal that had high sulfur content. That meant they produced great quantities of black smoke that darkened the sky over town. The air smelled bad and black dust was all over everything. Thresher engineers were covered with coal dust and ash.

The smoke and the shrill whistles permeated the town for several days before and after the official event. Clean air laws forced a change in the type of coal used which has cleared the skies around town during the show.

Our church had a huge tent and served three meals a day during Old Threshers. It was a massive undertaking that started weeks in advance and lasted at least a week after the event. The tents were set up and wired with electricity. Grills, refrigerators, freezers and ovens were moved into the tent as well as serving counters, tables and chairs.

The expectation was that every member of the family that could follow directions could help out in the tent. There were numerous kinds of jobs from food preparation to busing tables. The adults made sure the kids got the lowliest jobs. I remember one couple that served as cashiers taking money from the diners as they went through the line. No one dared to try to take that job away from them. They would shout at us kids to clean tables or work faster. I was often more than a little annoyed with that couple.

When I got my drivers license I drove a pickup truck back and forth between our church in downtown Mt. Pleasant and the fair grounds. Pies and other kinds of food were dropped off at the church and my job was to deliver it to the tent. I preferred that job to any of the others. I could get out of the mud, steamy air and smoke. Once one of the shift supervisors had me drive by a worker’s house to see if he was out mowing his lawn. The supervisor was mad because the guy hadn’t showed up for his shift in the kitchen.

Some of the cooks in the back had some beer in the big refrigerator. They hid it by drinking it in paper cups. The cup size was R38. So anytime one of them wanted a refill they ask someone close for an ‘R38.” They thought they were hiding all from us kids but, of course, we were on to them. Late in the evening several of them would stand out behind the tent smoking with their “R38.”

Sometimes the hot humid weather and rain turned the tent and the area around it into a quagmire. We carried in wagonloads of woodchips and spread them over the ground. It didn’t take long for them to become muddy and soaking wet. Tempers in the tent often flared and many un-Presbyterian things were said. Sometimes we saw each other in a different light and, in some cases, decided we didn’t like each other very much.

Our church and other churches that served at Old Threshers made a lot of money doing it each year. The Presbyterians finally decided they had had enough. When we built our new church near the grounds we shifted to parking cars and serving some meals from the building. I, along with many others, was glad it was over.

Over the years I had lots of other experiences with Old Threshers. They include working with the railroad when it first started, performing in the pageants in front of the stadium, taking tickets at the concerts, being part of the security detail, directing traffic and parking cars. I am sure there were other things, too.