110 Vintage Tractors Celebrate Town's 1956 Flood Victory

When the Murray and Darling rivers threatened to swallow the New South Wales town of Wentworth in 1956, farmers had a secret weapon on wheels.

The Ferguson TEA20 tractor, nicknamed the "little grey Fergie," was already revolutionizing Australian agriculture with its innovative hydraulic system and earth-moving capabilities. But during Australia's second-largest flood in recorded history, these compact machines became lifesaving heroes.

As water levels climbed to 9.75 meters and authorities urged residents to evacuate, local farmers made a different choice. They mounted their little grey tractors and worked around the clock, scooping and shifting earth to build protective clay levee banks that held back the raging waters.

The tractors climbed, patched, and strengthened the makeshift barriers until Wentworth was saved. A memorial cairn now stands in town bearing the rallying cry: "By God and by Fergie, we beat the flood."

This King's Birthday weekend, Wentworth turned that historic victory into a celebration. The town set a record for the largest gathering of Ferguson TEA20 tractors in one location, with 110 vintage machines rolling in from across Australia.

One owner even traveled from Hervey Bay in Queensland to participate. Australian Book of Records co-founder Helen Taylor presented the certificate, noting how the community continues turning potential tragedy into triumph.

The weekend celebration included a touching recreation of local legend. In 1956, farmer Ken Erskine famously refused to walk into the Royal Hotel for his victory beer, insisting on riding his tractor straight through the front doors instead.

Seventy years later, Renmark resident Ron Kohler got to recreate that moment with his own restored 1950s Fergie. "I've never driven a tractor into a pub before," he said with a smile.

The Ripple Effect

Pat McDermott, daughter of the original tractor-driving publican visitor, watched 110 tractors gather where her father once worked the levees. The sight brought back powerful memories of a community that chose solidarity over surrender.

"It was a big part of my life and everyone in this district would be very proud of what those men on their little Fergies did," she said through tears of joy.

The record-setting rally proved that some victories only grow sweeter with time, especially when celebrated with friends, tractors, and maybe a beer at the Royal Hotel.