Over 150 vintage tractors and machinery up for bids

Over a span of 50 years, husband-and-wife team, John and Sue Illingworth, have lovingly collected over 150 pieces of vintage agriculture and heavy machinery which were housed in a purpose-built ‘Supershed’ on their property in Three Springs, Western Australia.

John took great pleasure in restoring and re-commissioning the tractors back to their former glory, and even at his passing at age 92, he still had numerous tractors in-line to be restored.

Eventually, Sue decided it was time to part ways with the precious collection and was ready for the items to be passed onto new custodians.

The auction will be run by automobile and vintage tractor sales and auction specialist, Donington, at the couple’s property in Three Springs on September 25. Interested bidders are invited to view the collection a couple of days leading up to auction day.

One of the highlights of the auction, according to Donington, is a 1904 Ivel Agricultural Motor Tractor, which was the first commercially produced tractor in the world. This tractor is one of only eight left in existence, the auction house said, with other models scattered around the globe, including one in the Science Museum in London.

The Ivel up for bids is numbered ‘352’ and is recognised as the 7th oldest tractor in the world, Donington added.  In October 2019, a similar Ivel owned by the late John Moffit, a farmer and vintage tractor collector, was sold for a world record price of £328,600.

John and Sue Illingworth both hail from the UK who eventually settled down in Australia, in Three Springs, WA, running a sheep and wheat farm near Arrino. John was one of the first people in his UK district to apply for a tractor for ploughing, which was still carried by horses at the time.

John’s love of tractors and vintage machinery kept growing and it soon became a shared passion of the husband and wife duo, with the pair spending weekends searching for tractors that had been decommissioned and were languishing in barns, sheds and even fields.

On one occasion, the pair had to plough through a massive pile of rubbish and debris in a farmer’s shed in order to retrieve a tractor, which as luck would have it turned out to be a rare Munktell tractor.

The Illingtons’ collection grew to such an extent that they had to construct a ‘Supershed’ to house the collection on the farm. The shed also houses other unique pieces such as a 1928 Dennis Fire Engine and even a WWII Stuart M3 Fort Knox Military Tank.

With the upcoming auction, Sue Illington hopes the new owners of the vintage machines will get as much enjoyment from them as they have.

Those interested need to sign up to bid, with pre-bidding to open at 10am on September 19. Viewing of the collection will be allowed on September 23, 24 and 25 at the property. Live bidding will take place both in person and online on September 25.

For more information on the auction, visit doningtonauctions.com.au

Massive vintage tractor collection to go under the hammer