Johnny Popper Returns Home – June Featured Photo
1935 John Deere B (4 Bolt) This tractor was purchased in the 1940’s by my wife’s great grandfather Frances McKenna. It came with the farm he purchased in DeWitt, Michigan and was the second owner of the tractor.
Later in his life, in the 1990’s, he sold the John Deere to the neighboring farm boys, the McGoveny boys, who lovingly restored her to show quality condition. She was a regular participant in the DeWitt Ox Roast parade.
Last year, we were lucky enough to bring the “Johnny Popper” back into the McKenna family. She now resides on our farm in West Olive, Michigan and pulls hay wagon rides around the farm. There’s nothing like that Johnny Popper sound!
Patrick Fritz of West Olive, Michigan
2020 Catalog Photo Contest Winner
Discover more from Antique Tractor Blog
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I own one of those spoked wheel poppers. Sound is great! But strong arm starting is tough on me.
Have you tried starting it the way the operators manual says –
Hand over hand? It works with stock compression and a properly timed mag. I took a
47 A to a tractor show – swap meet in Waukee, Iowa in the 80s. All the old boys loved starting it because it started like they did when they were new. I bet it got started 50 times a day.
Hey I have a piece of equipment that I think belongs on a pop and Johnny. If I send you a picture, can you tell me how much that part is Worth? Thanks
She is a beauty!
Pretty old tractor a neighbor of mine when I was a kid had one. Here in wva , you could hear for a mIle pop, pop. Pop I thought it was cool
Growing up in the early 1940’s my grandparents used horses. When my father returned from the Navy in 1946 one could not buy a new car, but he was able to buy a John Deere Model LP which had a power take off. We used that until 1947 when he used an old Fordson until it gave out then he bought a 1935 John Deere JP which had spade rear wheels. It was started with a fly wheel and I am sure would have run on moon shine. I used that until 1951 when I started working on a large commercial farm where I drove a John Deere Model A and a John Deere Model G and pulled a John Deere hay bailer with a Wisconsin air cooled engine. I worked on this farm for two years until I started college and then worked the summers in Eastern Oregon driving a newer Ford Tractor with a 3-point hitch pulling a John Deere hay mower. I currently have an old 9-N Ford tractor but will always miss the old 2-cylinder John Deere tractors.