Uncovering Our History Through The Relics Left Behind
I wasn’t exactly sure what the leather notecards were when I saw them in the glass case at the auction house, so I asked to see them. Handing the tray of cards to me, the…
When I first saw the tin pieces in the furniture room at the auction house, I thought of the seed pods from the 1956 sci-fi movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” There were two of…
Posted in African American women, Black history, Equipment, Home, and Work
When I saw the wooden barrel in the rear yard of the auction house, I thought it was a planter, just like the ones I had at home, but much bigger and wider. As I…
Posted in Art, history, Music, Performers, Plays, Sports, and theater
Arcenia McClendon was telling a story about the time she met Paul Robeson: She was a young school teacher in her early 20s and she passed the house at 50th and Walnut Streets in Philadelphia on her…
I had to look up to see the red suitcase atop some furniture at the auction house. There was nothing unusual about the luggage itself, just the form that someone had given it. It was…
When I first say the group of hotel “Do Not Disturb” signs in a tray on the auction table, I was surprised and curious about why someone would bother to take them. But the more…
Posted in bottles, collectibles, Home, and Women
Did you see the sprinklers, my auction buddy Janet asked as I was looking at some item I was not likely going to buy at auction. When she said it, the image that came to my…
Posted in Black history, Ephemera/Paper/Documents, and Music
Friday at Auction Finds is a day to answer readers’ questions. I try to guide readers to resources to help them determine the value of their items or learn more about them. Today, a reader…
Posted in collectibles, Equipment, and history
The farm wagon was an old workhorse that had seen better years. It still had its wooden wheels, and its black paint had deep chips and scratches but was mostly intact. The wagon was perhaps the…
