The Tree Crusher

Manufactured by LeTourneau, the G175 Tree Crusher was designed specifically for land clearing and is the only selfpowered tree crushing machine of its size. Electrically powered, it is similar in principle to a steamroller. 

On November 9, 1964, the machine arrived at Kennedy Siding on six flat rail cars and took four days to unload and reassemble. From November 21 to December 9, 1964, an attempt was made to get the machine across country to the work area.  Various problems were encountered and the machine got stuck a number of times. The weather took a turn for the worse and stopped all further activity. The machine was left for the winter about two and a half miles in from the assembly site.

During the first part of the summer of 1965, the machine was plagued with troubles. It became stuck a number of times and mechanical failures were common. A total of 340 acres were downed from mid-May to the end of July.. In the latter part of the summer, production was increased and the whole operation began to function more smoothly. From August 1 to November 17, the tree crusher downed 2,250 acres, then shut down operation for the winter. For years, there had been talk of moving the LeTourneau G175 Tree Crusher from Cut Thumb Creek to Mackenzie to become one of the town’s major tourist attractions. On May 28, 1984, the Municipal Council of Mackenzie took the first positive step and appointed a "Tree Crusher Committee" led by Arnold Boomhower, to undertake the relocation of the giant piece of equipment.

On Friday, October 19, 1984, at 8:00am, two cranes loaded the six massive pieces of the tree crusher onto two low beds, two hi boys and two logging trucks. By 2:30pm the convoy, complete with pilot vehicles, wound its way down the Parsnip Forest Service Road to the Municipal Yard, arriving at 3:45pm. Over the next two days, the tree crusher was reassembled at its new site on Mackenzie Boulevard.