The Minneapolis Moline

From the time he was big enough to steer a tractor, about age 7, Bobby Doyle Russell was his dad’s main farm hand, the son who helped with the plowing, planting, weeding and the endless other farm tasks that crop up (no pun intended). Bob was also responsible for moving the cattle to pasture and back each day, but this story is about tractors. This responsibility, largely unpaid and unappreciated, continued until Bob joined the Navy in 1962.

 

Over the years Bob's dad, Doyle Russell, acquired quite a number of tractors. I am guessing about twenty but maybe closer to thirty. One winter day in the late 1970s or early 1980s, Doyle drove his Minneapolis Moline down from his place just north of Colorado County Rd 70 in Larimer County, to our place on Colorado County Rd 58, about twelve miles south. Bob had asked to borrow the tractor a few days to clear some land.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I took a few photographs of the two of them checking out the tractor, going over a few fine points of operating it. 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn’t realize at the time that on Martin Luther King Day, January 15, 1996, Doyle would have a life-changing accident with that Minneapolis Moline. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It caught on fire while Doyle was adding gasoline and the fire burned Doyle badly. He survived after months in the Greeley Hospital burn unit, but was never able to return to his farm and independent living.

Today I came across these photos and realized they are a metaphor for the relationship between this father and son. I can only imagine the Erskine Caldwell style book Bob Russell could write about his life with his father, if only he would. However, Bob's respect and love for his dad would never allow him to do that so I am thankful that over the years I've been privy to hearing this story, parts of it, anyway, and my life has been enriched by that.