Precious Metal Brings Richness to Life 

   If you asked Keith Parker what he wanted for Father’s Day, he’d say precious metal. But he doesn’t mean gold watches or silver coins. For Parker, precious metal means rusty old tractors.

   Behind his Auburn home, Parker restores antique tractors which include a 1946 A John Deere and a 1949 International Harvester. He’s also fixing up three antique plows, three bush hogs, a saw and a spreader. Or at least that’s what he had at last count.

   “I grew up with farming and I’ve always loved it,” he said. “My grandfather had a farm on Indian Creek Drive in Decatur which is now the Georgia State University recreational center. He had me driving tractors when I was pretty young.”

   Parker pulled out his family album and showed me pictures of himself playing with tractors as a toddler. “I can’t remember when I didn’t love tractors,” said Parker, a mechanic for Gene and Matt Tractor Sales in Winder. 

   I asked about a shiny orange tractor looking out of place among the rusted green and red ones.

   “Oh, that one’s new. I work for other people and get to make money while I’m riding on my big toy.”

   Parker researches tractor history and regularly watches tractor shows on RFDTV. But as precious as his tractors are to him, it’s about more than just the metal.

   Parker belongs to several antique tractor clubs. “All the people are down to earth and helpful. There’s no competition. Just good fellowship. Sure, some of the die-hard John Deere lovers kid about who’s going to pull who out of the mud, but it’s all good clean fun.”

   He enjoys parading with the Two Cylinder Club for Dacula Days and for Veteran’s Day in downtown Atlanta. But the real thrill goes way beyond chumming around with his tractor buddies.

   “It’s a good connection for kids to do stuff with their families. C.J. (my son) and I just went down to McCullers Farm in Loganville with about 100 other tractors and plowed up a field. He loved it.”

   “Another thing I like about it is that it’s preserving history. When you’re out in the general public, the tractors draw a lot of attention and you can see people reliving the past.”

   His wife Nancy noted, “You can see the warmth in peoples eyes and almost read their memories.”

   “Out in public strangers come up and want to talk about the old days. And in our own neighborhood there are people who’ve been walking around the block for years and we never met, but when I started collecting the tractors, they’d come over and want to talk about them,” he said.

   “Recently my dad brought my grandfather, who is now 94, to see all of my precious metal. He recognized everything right off the bat and his face really lit up.”


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