As part of the museum aspect of the mission, the Okanagan Historical Society has gathered together a respectable collection of machines, farm implements, tractors, engines and wagons of yesteryear, a great many of which are 100 years of age or more.
In the southeast corner of the mission grounds is a large collection of farm implements, some under cover, some in the open. This feed grinder is in the machine shed in the southeast corner of the grounds.
Made by the De Laval Dairy Supply Supply Company, apparently in Vancouver (or Winnipeg), it was operated through a wide belt pulley, driven either by a stationary engine or a small tractor. The operator would hand feed the material into the chute, which had a chain in the bottom pulling the feed into the cutter. Cut feed was simply dropped on the ground by the machine after cutting.
Apparently these feed cutters were quite popular with dairy operators for feeding the milk cows, but I'm not sure why. We never cut our feed - just heaved it into the feed troughs with pitchforks.
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