MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A 66-year-old piece of forestry equipment on display at Mississippi State University is being restored by the company that built it.

The Logger’s Dream is a 1948 log loader manufactured by Louisville, Mississippi-based Taylor Machine Works. The equipment has been on display at the biennial Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show at the university’s John W. Starr Memorial Forest since 2005.

J. D. Massey of Starkville was the loader’s original owner and operator. His son Paul donated the loader to the equipment show.

“I suggested they put that old loader next to the modern equipment so that people would know how it was done back in the early days,” Paul Massey said.

Each year, event organizers park the loader, mounted on a 1955 model Chevrolet truck, at the entrance to the show site and use it to display a list of exhibitors.

Taylor Machine Works began as a small machine shop in 1927. When the company moved to its present location in north Louisville in 1946, the Logger’s Dream was their major product.

“Restoring this Logger’s Dream loader takes us back to our roots,” said Robert Taylor, vice president of operations for Taylor Machine Works. “It demonstrates our dedication to and respect for the forest products industry, an industry that helped us grow into one of the largest manufacturers of heavy industrial lift trucks in the world.”

The remodeled Logger’s Dream will be on display at the 2014 Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show scheduled for September 19-20.

“We are so appreciative of the talents and generosity of the team at Taylor Machine Works and the Massey family,” said Misty Booth, show manager and MSU forest supervisor. “The Logger’s Dream is a historical treasure that represents our common heritage in the rich forest resources of our area.”