HOLT CAT posted on February 23, 2021 20:58
Peter Holt returned the antique Holt Caterpillar 10 Ton, displayed at the entrance to HOLT’s headquarters building, to its original owners, the Vouk Family of St Stephen, Minnesota.
Video: HOLT CAT Antique Tractor Donation
Scott Vouk, 25, remembers when the tractor was auctioned off in 2001. “It’s amazing,” Scott said, “I didn’t think that this was possible when I first called down here. I was very excited to see all of this work.” Holt requested that the Vouk’s make a donation to support technical education; the Vouk’s donated $7,500 to the diesel tech program at St. Cloud Technical College, where Scott, his father Tom, and sister earned degrees.
The early 20s model 10 Ton first worked with a construction company in St. Stephen which used the tractor to plow snow. The Vouk’s bought the machine in 1938 and used it for sawing lumber by stretching a belt between the Holt’s pulley and the sawmill to power the sawmill plate. The machine featured prominently in Vouk antique steam shows, a two-day event where visitors could see late 19th and early 20th century threshing and sawmill operations. Scott’s grandfather auctioned off the tractor in 2001 when Ben Holt purchased it; it was later transferred to HOLT.
On January 18, The Vouks hauled the tractor 1,300 miles to Minnesota. Father and son plan to get it running again. “We are going to do some engine work on it, and put it to work right away, sawing lumber with it, thrashing with it in the fall and pulling out steam engines, as it was always used,” said Scott.