ABOUT THE CLUB

The Hill Country Antique Tractor and Engine Club (HCAT&EC) was incorporated under this name on January 30, 2002. HCAT&EC superseded The Fredericksburg Antique Tractor & Engine Club, which dated back to 1986.  The purposes of the club now, as before, are:

1. To foster the preservation and knowledge of historical agricultural machines and methods,
2. To provide a venue for members to share common interests and experiences, and
3. To conduct an annual show at which members share their knowledge and exhibit their antique  tractors, engines, and other agricultural machines.

Monthly meetings and annual antique tractor and machinery shows were held at Swiss Acres, the Albert Meier ranch two miles east of Stonewall, until limited parking and other considerations dictated the need for a move to a different site.  Several locations were considered until negotiations with the Gillespie County Fairgrounds Association were concluded successfully and the 2004 Antique Tractor & Machinery Show was held at the Gillespie County Fairgrounds, two miles south of Fredericksburg.

Although the annual show has grown in size, the types of displays and demonstrations are basically the same now as in the past--exhibits of antique tractors and engines, tractor parades, demonstrations of agricultural machinery and tractor pulls.  At the 2006 show, 126 tractors were on display, along with 171 engines (including miniature engines and outboard motors) and approximately 50 other vehicles and implements.

Membership has increased gradually through the years to the present size of approximately 160 members. The nature of the HCAT&EC membership is changing.  In previous years, most members were or had been farmers or ranchers who owned antique tractors and engines which they exhibited and demonstrated.  Now, many of the members are interested and supportive, but they have never lived or worked on farms or ranches and they do not personally own tractors or engines.