HERMISTON — After collecting tractors for around 40 years, Tony and DeAnn Amstad successfully auctioned off hundreds of their prized collection on Saturday, Aug. 21, at their 2,400-acre potato farm outside Hermiston.

The main auction building was a full house, with people lining the sides to bid on more than 100 tractors ranging from antique John Deeres to Caterpillars and everything in between. They also were selling a 1956 International S120 truck and a 1983 Cadillac.

The Amstads listed 110 items for sale through the Booker Auction Co. based in Eltopia, Washington, with some dating back as early as the 1940s.

As words flowed in rapid-fire and bids were shouted out, the auction launched into action with bidders from Oregon, Washington and beyond.

With the auction livestreamed for online bids, many of the purchases were going to buyers from the Midwest, with numerous bids for the vintage tractors coming from Iowa, DeAnn said. The buyers would pack the tractors up and ship them wherever they needed to go.

The Amstads are second-generation Swiss- American potato farmers, and Tony, who grew up on his dad’s farm, first learned to drive on his father’s 1945 John Deere Model A tractor. He bought his first John Deere, a Model R Diesel, in the early 1980s and continued to add to his collection throughout his life.

Tony was able to restore many of the tractors he bought and got them in working condition and, according to DeAnn, he still rode and used them before the auction on Aug. 21. She said it took about two years to convince him to sell his collection, but it was nice to see them going to others with the same passions.

“It’s sad to see them go,” said DeAnn, and mentioned how much Tony loves going to a good auction.

“You really appreciate what they can do,” DeAnn said.