Pop pop fizz fizz at CAMA show

KENT — It was hot, and all around there were persistent popping sounds, perhaps mimicking what it feels like to sit inside a popcorn machine. 

But, no, it was the annual autumn festival of the Connecticut Antique Machinery Association on its Route 7 property. And the persistent popping was the sound of dozens of small engines of all shapes and sizes, still running strong even though some were a century or more older. 

The fall festival, which was held this year from Friday, Sept. 23, to Sunday, Sept. 25, is the weekend when the association shuts down its massive collection of antique machines for the winter.  The narrow-gauge train comes off the track and retires to its storage barn. The giant steam engines that powered American industry as well as small New England farms are wiped down and put to sleep until the spring.

The weather was perfect for the shut-down weekend and attendance was high on Saturday. The parking field was like a giant reflective blanket, with modern cars and trucks glinting in the bright, low, autumn sun. 

There was also a long row of antique and vintage vehicles parked in the field. And there were numerous small tents, where Boy Scouts from two local troops camped out through the weekend. A troop from New Milford helped with directing cars to parking spots; the Kent s

Scouts helped the local Lions Club serve breakfast on Saturday and Sunday.

Small machines chugged away, many of them reminding the 21st-century visitors how easy life is now. The time- and labor-saving devices of the past certainly offered relief to families of the 19th century, but they look relatively unwieldy and exhausting to modern eyes. 

Todd Ryker of Bethany, Conn., explained the benefits of his 1915 gas-powered water pump, noting that back when there was no electricity a gas-powered pump could be turned on once a week to pump water up to the third floor of a house. From there, the water would descend downward for use in washing, cooking and other household chores. It was a big improvement over going to the well and using a hand pump, but certainly more work than turning a faucet and having hot water magically begin to flow.

There were other time savers, from small water-cooled engines and a primitive Maytag washing machine to massive Avery and Russell tractors that were the size of trains and were used to tow plows.

The dirt paths in between the big barns full of big machine were, as usual, trafficked by a variety of machines large and small, like the 1440 Frick farm machine that its former owner, Dick Everett, said has a rare Tasmanian clutch.

— Cynthia Hochswender