Personal items acquired as part of a purchase

[carlsonjok]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

If it is a situation where I cannot give them back, I don't chuck them. There is very little that is truly worthless. I bundle leftovers like that with other ephemera that I accumulate from acquisitions and eventually wholesale or trade the whole bundle to another dealer. Some people will retail thousands of random old photos; I don't have the patience. I will retail interesting subjects like military, automotive, tourist sites, beaches, etc.

Is there even a market for it? My wife collects mid-century barware, so we spend a fair amount of time in antique stores. It seems like every one has a basket somewhere near the front with stacks of old snapshots and postcards priced at $0.50 to $1.00 each. Like others, it makes me sad to see what was, at the time, a notable life moment for someone that is now stripped of all context and significance. Does anyone buy them, or are the store owners just loath to throw them out also?

[Jewish-collector]

Take it all to a large paper show like the one in Allentown, Pennsylvania (link below) and ask the dealers for ideas about what to do with it all.

https://www.allentownpapershow.com/

[Exhibitman]

There is a market. You just have to be at the right place.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by carlsonjok

Is there even a market for it? My wife collects mid-century barware, so we spend a fair amount of time in antique stores. It seems like every one has a basket somewhere near the front with stacks of old snapshots and postcards priced at $0.50 to $1.00 each. Like others, it makes me sad to see what was, at the time, a notable life moment for someone that is now stripped of all context and significance. Does anyone buy them, or are the store owners just loath to throw them out also?

After my mom died, my sisters and I went through the old picture album. We could identify an aunt or uncle here or there, but most people we couldn't. Sadly, these pictures that meant so much to our mom meant little to us, and would mean nothing to my sister's kids. So, we tossed them with some sadness, but no regret.

[philliesfan]

I bought a stamp collection off of Craigslist (and what a buy!). I paid the $200.00 asking price and ended up with over $4,300.00 in unused US postage. There was a lot of other stamps in the collection. Also in the collection were certificates and awards from the collector. Apparently he had no family as it was a neighbor that was in charge of the estate. I enjoyed going through the collection and enjoyed reading his notes he had with some of the stamps. I could not get myself to throw away any of the awards or certificates and they remain in one of my boxes.

A second purchase was a collection of paper items, mostly pictures, that ended up being from the estate of Helen Chiotes. She worked in television and there were a lot of picture of her at many different events. There was also items like proposed TV lineups, Radio and TV convention programs and other paper items. I cannot throw any of the pictures out and they also are in a box.

Bob

[jimtigers65]

I attended a monthly 300 table antique faire with my daughter. Out of the blue she said it was depressing because all these items belong to someone’s parents. I teased her and she will be doing this with my stuff someday.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by jimtigers65

she said it was depressing because all these items belong to someone’s parents.

I often think about that at estate sales and antique shows, especially when I see WWII materials from someone's service, but I don't get depressed. Even though the relations a generation or two down the line just do not care, there are strangers who care about these artifacts. That snapshot from Great Uncle Leo's time at WWII airborne training means nothing to the family but someone will purchase it and enjoy it and research the subject and honor the person that way, and that's what I find redeeming about the process. It's much the same with cards: little Johnny is long gone but his T206 collection lives on.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by philliesfan

I bought a stamp collection off of Craigslist (and what a buy!). I paid the $200.00 asking price and ended up with over $4,300.00 in unused US postage. There was a lot of other stamps in the collection. Also in the collection were certificates and awards from the collector. Apparently he had no family as it was a neighbor that was in charge of the estate. I enjoyed going through the collection and enjoyed reading his notes he had with some of the stamps. I could not get myself to throw away any of the awards or certificates and they remain in one of my boxes.

A second purchase was a collection of paper items, mostly pictures, that ended up being from the estate of Helen Chiotes. She worked in television and there were a lot of picture of her at many different events. There was also items like proposed TV lineups, Radio and TV convention programs and other paper items. I cannot throw any of the pictures out and they also are in a box.

Bob

If the awards are from shows with stuff like Gold silver Bronze they're a sign that he had some much better items.

Certificates with a picture of the item are sort of like having a card slabbed, and are more reliable. For a lot of items they can make a huge difference in value.