Plowing Tug Hill

This video from 1939 in New York State provides a look at the way winter operations were performed over 70 years ago.

[@KennethHubbard_RPh_GP]

This video is a great testament to the men like my father, Howard Hubbard, who spent 40 years fighting northern NY winters in equipment just like this. There is no question that Walter's made the finest snow plow ever builts. Frink's plow designs are still in use today mounted on modern 10 wheel trucks of various manufacturers.

[@andyginterblues2961]

My family had a farm in the Tug Hill valley, near Glenfield. During the blizzard of '77, my mom, sister and I were snowed in for around two weeks after over six feet of snow fell in five or six days. We had no snowmobile, and had to just sit tight, until the plows got through. As I recall, conventional plows weren't up to the job, and plows on halftracks that were used by the army to clear the runways at Wheeler- Sack airfield at Camp Drum were pressed into service. There were stories about cars that were buried in snow being run over and flattened by these halftracks. After sitting in the farmhouse for what seemed like forever, one day, we heard a plow coming down Pine Grove road, from the direction of Lowville. I ran out on snowshoes, and flagged down the driver, and directed him to come and plow out a cut near where my car was buried. Everyone who managed to get out went to the town barn in Lowville, where we were put into vans with shovels, and spent the next few weeks shoveling off roofs, digging people out who were trapped in their houses, etc. Barn roofs collapsed under the weight of the snow, many cows were killed. My sister still lives in Lowville, and tells me that they got five feet, I believe it was 2013- 2014. Lot of snow up around there.

[@fourbyfourer]

Thanks for the good old story. I love hearing stories of the good old days.

[@VTLocalRoads]

Thanks everyone for sharing your stories in regards to this video. We are glad so many people have taken interest and viewed it.

[@435now]

A lot of the smaller towns still have their Walters, might not be the first ones but there are quite a few that bought them new in the late 40's early 50's that still run them. These trucks were expensive back then and were only used to plow snow, Plus they were designed with these conditions in mind and were built acordingly. The one in the film more than likely has a GVW of between 38,000 and 42,000 lbs not including the ballast and plows

[@gailbrown8522]

Love this! My dad was born in 1939 plus he was born in Massena, NY just north of Tug Hill area. His father used to plow in the Newark, NY area for a short while. Great vintage video.

[@Claydon4]

@ Linn TractorNut The story you heard was correct, it was my grandfather Ross Calder who suggested to Frink that it be restored. He took the canister of film home and went to work sorting, cutting and taping back together all this film footage. He wrote a script which he narrated and added a bluegrass soundtrack, then he went to a studio to record the narration along with the music. He worked for Frink for 43 years.

[@chassius]

Drove Oshgosh Snow Blowers and Plows in the UP in the late 60s. what a blast I had!

[@cvet12]

this is sick! nice to see this vintage video i plow snow in Northern cape breton and oh the snow 60-70 foot banks in some spots the power lines are under the snow.we used old 4x4 scott trucks made by irving in new brunswick and oshkoshs and 4x4 westerns stars and cat loaders and dozers with v blades.

[@midstateNYsummers]

I remember the Blizzard of 66 and these plows busting through drifts 12 feet high on Broadfield Rd in the Town of Pompey. It was awesome! Describing this to folks today and it's almost like you can't remember it right and are exagerating, then you see this and there it is all over again.

[@davidwadsworth8982]

AW R this one and Feb 72,had my car in Oneida Dorm parking lot in Feb.72, went out next morning, what lot,what car. Went to breakfast with my girlfriend through the tunnel to the D FAC, all I saw was dark white wall.,Drift was floor to ceiling, 8 feet high.Dam was I happy, snowed in with her ,beer and southern comfort. 5 days before I left,drove through anther one from just north of Syracuse, on 48 on to 81 all the way south to Marathon,then they closed 81 and western 17. The 3 bear in was a life saver.

[@dwynepen7626]

Ontario was very similar to this as a boy growing up..by then orange Champion graders with screaming Detroit engines and Vplow and wings... ramming banks and again and again ..the snow very packed in this video amazing video

[@scoopie19478]

Great piece. I regret there's no movie of the year that the state borrowed the 12-foot rotary runway plow from Griffiss Air Force Base to clear Rt. 26 across the Tug. In some areas they had to bore a tunnel through the big drifts, back out, collapse the snow roof and hit it again to open the road. That's SNOW.

[@robyeager7283]

Old post but 1966 was a bad year

[@danaeward3260]

My Father was Highway Superintendent for the Town of Preble for 17 years.

[@lyndsaysnyder3198]

My family has a farm in Turin on Gomer Hill and we have recently gotten pounded with 5 feet of snow in two days; Not anything like this yet though. This is incredible.

[@andyginterblues2961]

The blizzard of '77 was over six feet. My family's farm was over near Glenfield, in the valley, across Rte 12 from yours. My mom, sister and I were snowed in for around two weeks, with no snowmobile. You were probably a child then, or hadn't been born. Ask your parents.

[@WildWillie12065]

My father worked for the Town & Village of Castile, NY, in Wyoming County in western NY. The Town had a Walters truck with a V-plow just like that! What a machine! Years later, they replaced it with the biggest 6-wheel-drive road grader that Caterpillar made. It had a 12-foot V-plow and twin 17-foot wings (if I remember correctly). But the Walters was the mean machine in its day...

[@LinnTractorNut]

The story I heard was this was an old film that was nearly discarded when someone got the idea to preserve it for company employees sales personnel, a salesman named Joe Natali brought a copy down to Gould & Bridges in Morris and let a friend of mine, Ken Cooke (whose son has uploaded Linn videos), make a copy, and all local copies were made from that. Great that someone got it uploaded! Frink was the best plow made IMHO.

[@DeafKat]

remembered when I was a little, my parents drove me to Rome from Watertown. Snow was so high at Constable on route 26 every year but it was good job to cut snow path so we can go through narrow road. We can't look over snow to the fields or farms.

[@MrJlamb10]

I remember running out the door to watch the Town of Martinsburg plow when it went by our house. Many days the snow was that deep. The Blizzard of 71 & 77 were even deeper.

[@NYNCMIKE]

I am from this area in NY and the snow was always deep.

[@stevenorwood2988]

Cap 10323, I believe that is Jim and Jesse McReynolds. You can distinctly hear Jesse's unique style of mandolin picking. The name of the first tune is Home Sweet Home which was popularised by Earl Scruggs.

[@samgarofalo2461]

I live in NE PA and have been pushing snow since 1972, I’ll take the cold and snow over the West coast fires and drought, the south’s heat and hurricanes, and the mid west’s tornadoes any day. At least we can dress Warmer.

[@davidwadsworth8982]

Sam,lived upstate,N.Y.on Lake Ontario,totally agree. Goretex and down.

[@NYNCMIKE]

You should see some of the blowers they use in this area to move snow, they are very effective getting the snow away from the road, as was said in this video, all that work and a good blow would fill it all back in within just a couple of hours, this area gets this volume of snow due to lake effect snow from Lake Ontario.

[@Thetruckhunter]

So great to finally see this footage online!! No plow ever outdid the Walters!

[@VTLocalRoads]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@kandkmotorsports]

I heard the same thing linn. I have a copy of this on vhs my grandfather gave to me years ago. He sold trucks for years.

[@thatjpwing]

Parts of this look like they were filmed on the Woodbattle Rd, just off 177

[@roadpanzir]

Hey Mac, thanks for the tug, on the hill!

[@weasel884]

love the earl scruggs music

[@franmcmullen2115]

"Goin' home gear!" I love it !

[@olddave4833]

I plowed snow all over that area when I was a kid in the 40s, used a grain scoop, they were steel then, they were better when they started making them out of aluminum

[@vinnysantucci1596]

Thats so cool. Im from the Tug Hill. Really cool local history there.

[@gregorynie8051]

love vids like this , it would be cool if you had some snow plowing vids from present time.

[@sldl04]

Man up---that's how you live in it. We're used to it around here.

[@TrojanHorse1959]

Loved the video guys, Thanks!

[@owentimo]

Wonderful video. I'm glad it got rescued....

[@TheDabomb57]

this is nice to see as i live in oswego new york

[@Bayan1905]

I don't imagine you could get a new truck to do what those trucks could do back then. Not the repeated pounding over and over again. Those old trucks could run circles around some of the newer stuff, sure they might not go very fast or have a lot of the creature comforts, but they made up for it in reliability and brute strength.

[@stiltoncheesewright]

I wonder how many seasons they got out of these beasts with this kind of punishing service ?

[@435now]

Gotta love the old Walters

[@1mantisco]

I remember when we used to get "REAL" snow storms.It's been some time since we had a "REAL" winter too

[@mountainguyed67]

What brand trucks are the plows? I see the bread truck is International. Great video,my wife and son liked it too.

[@niilokorpi9826]

New York State built Walter Snow Fighters with Walter’s 100 % Traction, Walter’s 4 Point Positive Drive built at New York City, Voorhesville, & Guilderland.

[@MrJlamb10]

Many.

[@davidpringle8089]

Very interesting video but the music ruined it. I didn't mute because I wanted to hear the narrator.

[@tamarahallock]

I believe those vehicles are newer than 1939.

[@mannequinfukr]

I guess for that plowing job, people had to know where the road was

[@dtman66]

And I thought wings were a new invention.

[@MrPlowboy66]

When men were men and hydraulics were non-existent.

[@charleslowell1594]

guess they didn't know to start plowing as soon as it starts snowing.....live and learn....

[@435now]

I think Oswego still has a Walter last I heard

[@davidwadsworth8982]

You are right,everybody should experience a Lake Monster white wall once in their life.

[@LizaMarie0686]

colored film has been around way before 1939. O_o 1901-1902 was the first color film.

[@cameltanker1286]

Tell you what; you can keep the good old days.

[@jfgup12]

is there any way to get a copy of this mary forrester

[@flagemdown66]

Low End Torque!!!

[@Rustbelt_Research]

Anyone Know what the Music Playing In the background? Please Let me know!

[@copenchewgreen]

I wonder if "charlie" was charlie graves?

[@adirondackguy1]

They are Walters trucks...

[@billthomas9284]

For all us Californians whining about a little water.

[@VTLocalRoads]

Hi John. Please contact me directly at [e-mail] and I can see what I can do.