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The Behind the Auction Scoop on the January 2019 Auctions

1/31/2019

I know that it has been awhile since I have written a new blog. I often have customers come up to me at auctions and ask when I will be writing another one. I must admit, that I had very good intentions of writing a couple in November and December and life kinda got in the way. I wanted to start some new traditions with the kids now that they are getting a little older, so that took priority over writing. I am very glad to hear that people enjoy reading and look forward to my blog. I originally started it as a way to remember and be able to look back on the auctions that we had and the items that I liked, and now it has grown into so much more. Thank you so much for reading and following along with us on this journey of living our dream.

It is customary at the end of the year to look back on the past year and look forward to the year ahead. We did 33 auctions in 2018!!!! Thirty-three!!! From doing a few a year when Matt and I first met, to doing it full-time in a few short years, it has grown a lot. And we hope that it will continue to grow. Each year, I try to set goals that I would like to accomplish in the new year. Often, I am like most of us that set a goal and by the end of January it is a memory. One of the goals that I set for myself this year is to write at least one blog each month. I have thought about lots of different ideas and I have had some people ask me to start writing about other things than auctions, but I don’t think I am ready to do that. At least not here. So, I finally settled on an idea of a monthly behind the auction scoop. Each month, I will look back on the auctions that we have had that month and some of the items we have sold and bring you the behind the auctions scoop. Hopefully, I can share some of the stories of the interesting things and even more interesting people that we meet along the way.

Our first auction of 2019 was the Signs, Advertising, Gas & Oil, Primitives & Antiques auction on January 5th. Here are some of my favorite items-

Lot 193 Upright Pepsi machine- I am a total Pepsi girl. It should be its own food group, in my opinion. This is just cool, and I mean, what girl doesn’t dream of having her own Pepsi machine!

Lot 206 Wooden 32 Drawer Cabinet- Look at all those drawers!!!!

Lot #210 Coca-Cola chest cooler/machine- Now I am not a Coke girl, as I previously stated. But I don’t know how anyone wouldn’t love this cooler. It was metal and I can only image the store that it used to be in and all the little children that have stood on their tip toes to reach inside for a bottle of pop. It just brings back memories of a day and time that is unfortunately long gone in this country.

Lot 268 Kist Sign/Chalkboard-In my hometown there was a Kist factory, so basically anything Kist, I love!!! I have many fond memories of visiting the factory and getting to select the kind of pop that we wanted to fill the old wooden pop cases. My favorite flavor was orange over ice on a hot summer day. One lucky buyer from Clayton County, who probably grew up drinking Kist pop too was the proud new owner of this sign.

Lot 274 Iron Michelin Man statue- I mean just look at him! He is so cute! Don’t you just want to pinch his cheeks!!!

Our second auction in January was the Tools, Beer Signs, Beer Memorabilia, & Local Household Auction on January 19th. This auction was kinda for the guys with all the tools and beer stuff. But there was one item that I loved- the large wooden tool bin. It was heavy, very heavy. It was fun to just think of all the treasures that you could fill the drawers with to discover. It was down to two bidders that both came specifically for this item and while both of them would have loved to take it home, only one of them was the high bidder. And a very happy bidder to take it home.

We have two more great auctions scheduled in February and lots more to come in 2019!!!! And that is your behind the auction scoop for January 2019. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you Saturday at the auction!!! Lisa

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The George Barta Estate & Leather & Saddle Shop Auction, September 22, 2018

11/18/2018

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One thing I love the most about auctions is going through everything and setting it up. It is like Christmas as a kid, because you never know what you are going to find. Another thing I love is learning about the people that we get to do auctions for. I always wonder- where did they get this? And, why did they keep that? I always get a sense of who that person was and learn a little about their life. The George Barta Estate and The Leather & Saddle Shop auction on September 22, 2018 was no different.

Growing up my Uncle Harlan worked as a farrier and several of my family members owned horses. One year for my brother’s birthday, my Uncle Harlan gave us a horse. We named that horse, Tony the Pony and boy did we have fun with him. I have many fond memories of going outside to the barn with bare feet, feeding him grain from the old metal grain cans, giving him sugar cubes and riding him bareback around the acreage we grew up on. Tony the Pony was also a little mischievous and more than once he just walked up the road and ended up in town in someone’s backyard usually just enjoying eating some grass. One time we were driving down the street to turn onto the gravel road to our house and there came Tony trotting up the road with his lead dragging behind him.

On the day the Barta estate was delivered, I was at home with the kids and I received a text message from my husband and Harry Lahr Auctions Auctioneer Matt Lahr with a photo of a pony. Not a real pony, a life size hobby pony that used to stand in the window of the Saddle & Leather Shop. As the weeks passed and the auction got closer, we received several calls about the pony and arranged times for several possible bidders to view the pony prior to the auction.

The Leather & Saddle Shop had been in business since 1908 and George purchased it in 1946. The pony sat in the window of the store and George often dressed it all up and took it with him to western shows around the state. In 2008 which would have been the 100th anniversary of The Leather & Saddle Shop which had since closed, the City of Cedar Rapids flooded. The Leather & Saddle Shop was in one of the hardest hit areas know to locals as Czech Village. For two weeks, the family was not allowed into the area. When George’s daughter was finally allowed into the store, she found the pony floating upside down in the flood water. When the water finally receded, and the family could start cleaning up, they took the pony outside and tied him up to a lamp post to start drying out. George’s daughter knowing how much he loved that pony would later clean its real horse hair mane and tail strand by strand to remove the mud left by the flood water.

The day of the auction came and with bidders from as far away as Kansas and Texas that drove to Earlville just for the auction. As it got closer to the pony being auctioned off, I hoped that I would be able to take of video. When the time came, I wasn’t busy helping a customer, and I walked to the front of the auction center and positioned myself by the pony and was able to get just the right shot of Matt on the auction block. The bidding started at $1,500 and when the final bid was called the pony had been purchased for $3,400. A few days later, the pony was loaded up in a trailer and headed to his new home.

All day during the auction, as people would come to the cashier counter to pay for their items, they would take the time to share a memory of George and The Leather & Saddle Shop. I heard stories of a women that remembered visiting the store with her parents as a child. She said that George would let her sit on the pony to keep her and her siblings occupied so her parents could shop in his store. Several people asked if the bidder that purchased the pony planned to keep it or sell it. And they were all relieved to hear that they planned to keep it in their home and enjoy it for years to come.

I never had the opportunity to meet George, but through the memories of his family and the customers of his store, I felt like I did. Our children, Mahala and Caleb loved going to the auction center in the weeks leading up to the auction to see the pony, just as I imagine that many children did when they would pass by or visit The Leather & Saddle Shop over the years. To view the video of the pony being auctioned off please visit our Facebook page here.

Photos provided and used with permission from Nancy Barta, George’s daughter.

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Have you lost your marbles????

10/2/2018

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On August 25, 2018, we held the estate auction of James "Jim" Opitz of Strawberry Point, IA. It started out like most estate auctions with a phone call from a family member that was interested in having an auction. My husband and Harry Lahr Auctions Auctioneer Matt Lahr headed up to take a look and take a few photos. Soon after he uploaded the photos on to the website and it didn’t take long for one item to get noticed- a flat of marbles.

We often sell marbles on our auctions but this flat of marbles was getting a lot more attention than usual. After phone calls and messages from in and out of state bidders requesting additional photos of three certain marbles we heard the word- Superman. To most of us Superman is the super hero that first appeared in the Action Comics #1 comic book in April 1938. But to marble collectors Superman is a highly collectible marble with a blue, red and yellow swirl.

The day of the auction arrived, and Lot #46 came up and with three phone bidders and an audience of bidders on site, the bidding started. The opening bid received a gasp from the audience. My phone bidder asked me to repeat myself and quickly said they were out. I stood behind the cashier’s desk and the family was standing near by and in disbelief the bidding continued until a phone bidder in another state was the winning bidder at $840.00.

The ring man brought the locked case with the marbles in it to me and I put it behind the desk. As auction customers began to come up to pay for their items, several people asked what is so special about those marbles? The family simply couldn’t believe it.

After the auction the winning bidder arranged to have the marbles shipped. We packaged them up and sent them to their new home. While that flat of marbles left some people asking if bidders had lost their marbles, to one happy bidder….we hope you found your Superman.

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The Behind the Auction Scoop- July 28, 2018 Antiques & Collectibles Auction

8/21/2018

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When a life long collector gives you a call and says they want to sell a few items, you say “YES!!!” And that is just how our July 28, 2018 Antiques & Collectibles Auction started. A few weeks later, they delivered the boxes and furniture. As my husband and Harry Lahr Auction’s Auctioneer Matt was unpacking, he texted me some pictures. And I started to excited. I’m always so jealous when he gets to unpack for auctions like this one.

The day of the auction it was beautiful. As customers started to come in and register, I always am interested to hear how they find out about our auctions and why they buy what they do. That Saturday was no different. We had customers from as far away as Florida, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois and from all corners of Iowa. There was a nice mix of items- antiques, collectibles, furniture, choice lots, stoneware and toys. As customers checked out that day some of them told me of items that they had been looking for and were able to add to their collections that day, items that they missed out on and wished they would be taking home and plans to set up at upcoming antique shows. Another successful auction.

Here are just of my favorite things from the July 28th Auction-

Lot #112 Bon Ami dovetailed box

Lot #149- Weeks, Akron, OH Moonshine Jug

Lot #170- Carbureter counter top cabinet

Lot #185- Hotel front counter

Lot #189- Baxter’s Wines advertising mini jug

Lot #190- W.R. Fields, Tipton, IA advertising stoneware rolling pin

Lot #193- Michigan-Minnesota Red Wing mini jug

Lot #194- The Thompson Store, Gilbert, IA advertising stoneware rolling pin

Lot #197- Very early tramp art box, dated 1846 (I wish this could talk!!!!)

Lot #200- Stained glass window in frame (Can you image the house that this came out of? I can!!!)

Lot #203- Colonial Bread counter string holder

Lot #205- Red Wing birch leaf 5 gal. crock jug

Lot #214- Pepsi bottle machine

Lot #227- GE Mazda Lamps display glass signs

Lot #228- Wooden chandelier- WOW!!!!

And that is the behind the auction scoop!!! We hope to see you again at our August 25th James "Jim" Opitz Estate Auction.

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The Behind the Auction Scoop on the March 24th Auction

4/7/2018

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The March 24, 2018 auction started not unlike most of our auctions. At an auction one day, a good auction customer of ours and I were talking. He started to tell me that he had a friend that was thinking about getting rid of some of his antiques. He said that his friend used to go to auctions all the time and buy similar items that he collects. He asked what he should do, and I told him to have his friend give my husband and Harry Lahr Auctions Auctioneer Matt Lahr a call and I handed him our business card. I knew if his friend collected similar things as him, it was going to be a great auction and I crossed my fingers that his friend would call.

A couple days later, the said friend gave Matt call. He explained that he was taking a different direction with his career and wanted to start getting rid of some stuff. He said that he had stuff at his house and in a couple of storage units. Since it was still the middle of winter he was unable to get into his storage units, but he was willing to bring some boxes down from his house and have an auction.

A couple of weeks later, he brought down a trailer load of boxes and told Matt that he wasn’t sure what was in most of the boxes and to have fun. I was super disappointed that I couldn’t be there to help Matt start unpacking. I love setting up for auctions, because it is like Christmas day as a kid all over again. As the day went on, Matt sent me some text messages with photos of what he was finding. With each text message I got even more jealous!!! As Matt was setting up and taking pictures I found a way to have to stop at the Auction Center, so I could check everything out in person.

There are two things when it comes to auctions you can’t control- the weather and if people will bid or not. As the auction drew closer the weather reports started talking about an early spring snow storm. The phone started ringing, the emails started to come in and auction customers started to ask, “If we get a snow storm, are you still going to have the auction?” As they say in show business the “show must go on” and in the auction business the auction must go on.

The day of the auction, I woke up at 5:00 a.m. and looked outside to see a small covering of sparkling white snow. My heart dropped. But I was hopeful that we wouldn’t get any more and it wouldn’t affect the auction. As the morning went on and time for the auction drew closer, the snow started to fall. Our phones started ringing and we put posts on social media to let people know that that auction would go on as scheduled. By 8:00 a.m. our phones were ringing off the hook with bidders wanting to set up absentee and phone bids.

As we were talking to customers, getting customers that had made the trip to Earlville checked in, our computers decided that they didn’t like the snow either and they didn’t want to talk to each other. It was one of those mornings, that if something could go wrong- it went wrong. We got the computers talking again and with customers still trickling in we started the auction. Even after we started, we continued to receive phone calls, text and private messages to bid on items.

During the auction, I had the opportunity to bid on several items for an absentee bidder that collects World War II memorabilia. It was fun to bid on things for him and I was able to deliver the items he purchased last week. They will become part of his collection, that I hope I will get to see one day.

At every auction, there are items that I have never seen before and may never see again. Here are a few of my favorite items from the March 24th Auction-

Lot #4- Bunte Chocolate Pumpkins Box

Lot #17-Ornate 5 drawer spice cabinet w/ flip top

Lot #26-Cardboard Dr. Lynas' Hair Grower sign

Lot #46- Crispo Lily Soda Crackers tin

Lot #75-Flat of skeleton keys

Lot #87- Louis Marx tin wind-up circus toy

Lot #100- Blue/white stoneware butter pail

Lot #112- Flat of porcelain bathroom items including shower head (Just imagine the house that these came out of!!!!)

Lot #183- 3" Wooden bowl & masher (Miniature!!! How Cute!!!)

Lot #277- Black & White Family photo with frame

Lot #279- Black & White Photo of barn raising

Lot #293- Lindstrom Mammy tin wind-up toy

Lot #333- Rare wooden egg case by J.G. Cherry Co., Cedar Rapids, IA advertising Hermann Bros., General Merchant, Guttenberg, IA

Lot #335- 2 Gal. salt glazed beehive jug w/ turkey droppings
Click here to view a video of the jug!

Lot #431- 1 Gal. stoneware jug adv. Churchill Drug Co., Burlington, IA

To all of the bidders that braved the weather from as far away as Idaho and South Dakota and as near as Petersburg, Manchester and Dyersville, and every where in between, thank you for coming. To the phone bidders from Illinois, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, we thank you for your bids and we hope that you love your items and enjoy them for many years to come. And finally, to the collector that trusted us to sell his items- you have a wonderful collection. It was wonderful to get to share them with others and it was great to get to know you and hear your incredible life story. If you get around to writing that book about your life, we can’t wait to read it. And that is the behind the auction scoop.

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You will never believe what I found on the side of the road….

2/25/2018

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There is a saying, “one person’s trash, is another person’s treasure”. If you are a true antiquer this is true, and it also means you have probably dumpster dived once or twice too, ok, ok, more like a million times, but only once or twice when a police officer just happened to drive by. (True story, but that is another blog.) One of my favorite things about having auctions and going to antique shows is hearing the stories behind the pieces. This is the story behind one of my favorite pieces that I found on the side of the road…

It was a cold, gloomy Saturday morning and a friend and I were headed to an auction somewhere that I have long since forgotten. We were headed south on U.S. Highway 13 and drove into Strawberry Point, IA. As we came into town, we soon noticed that it was city wide clean up days, when unwanted items are set by the side of the road to be picked up and hauled off to be destroyed. We were chatting along when out of the corner of my eye I spotted a pie safe on the side of the road. It was painted white with punched tin sides laying on the ground. For a second, I wondered to myself if my eyes were playing tricks on me. Mid-sentence I interrupted my friend and said, “Turn around there is a pie safe back there on the side of the road.”

She quickly replied with, “A pie safe! No way, no one would throw a pie safe away.”

“It’s a pie safe, quick turn around,” I screamed.

Inside I feared that someone would snatch it up before we could get back. Looking back on it, I am pretty sure we were the only people driving through town at the time. So, right there is the middle of the four-way stop in the shadow of the World’s Famous Giant Strawberry she did an illegal U-turn. We headed back north and pulled over on the side of the road. Sure enough there it was- a pie safe laying on the side of the road. It had been misting most of the morning, as we stood there on the side of the road it started to rain and rain hard. We looked it over and saw that it was in pieces and needed to be loved again. A million thoughts were going through my head. “Will it fit in her SUV?” “What if she wants it?” “Where am I going to put it in my house?” “Will I ever be able to get it put back together?” When behind us came a voice, “You can have it if you want it.”

It was the owner of the house with his head sticking out the door not wanting to get wet in the rain. We asked him if it was a pie safe, which we knew that it was. He said that it was all there, it was just in pieces and needed to be put back together. By this time, he had walked out of the house and was standing next to us on the side of the road. My friend asked me if I thought it would fit in her SUV. I told her we would make it fit and if it didn’t we would tie it to the top. I am pretty sure she thought I was nuts by now. She said, “If we take it how are we ever going to haul everything we get at the auction?”

I told her, “We can get someone to haul our stuff home from the auction.” As I knew we were meeting some friends there.

“If we don’t take it with us now, it will be gone by the time we get back after the auction.” Inside my heart was starting to break at the thought of driving away and leaving it behind. The kind gentleman that it belonged to offered to move it and keep it for us until we came back. I said, “Let’s just see if it fits first.”

We opened up the back of her new SUV, laid down the seats and the kind man said, “Oh yeah, it should fit in there.” My heart lept with joy! So, we picked it up, it was covered in drops of mud from sitting in the rain overnight, with a little pushing and pulling, it fit!!! Miraculously, the back door even shut. I offered to pay him some money for it and he kindly declined. He said, “No, you girls just enjoy it. It is a great piece.” I shook his hand and thanked him. I think he could tell how happy it made me that day so long ago.

We hopped back in the car and my friend and I looked at each other, both wet from the rain with mud on our hands. She said, “I can’t believe that just happened! That never happens!”

“It did today,” I said.

We headed back South, and we quickly realized that we were going to be late for the auction. When we arrived, we met up with our friends that had already arrived. They said that they were starting to get worried about us because we were running late. My friend turned to me and said, “Lisa found a pie safe on the side of the road and we had to stop and pick it up.” Both of our friends’ eyes got big and they said “What?!? You found a pie safe?”

“Yep, just laying on the side of the road in Strawberry Point. It’s in the car, so if we buy anything today you have to haul it home for us,” I explained.

They gave each other a glance, as if they didn’t believe us. So, after the auction, we walked back to her SUV and opened up the back. They both looked inside to check it out.

When we got back to my house that day, we unloaded it in the garage and for a couple of years it sat there waiting to be put back together. When it came time for me to move in with my husband Matt, he asked me if I wanted to move it. I told him that I did. I think he thought I was a little nuts too. So, we loaded it up and moved it into our storage building.

One day, I came home from work and Matt said that he knew someone that could put that old pie safe back together again for me. We talked about it a little awhile and he picked up the phone to give him a call. He said that he could do the best he could and to bring it over sometime. The next day, we loaded it up again and drove over to his woodworking workshop. I told him the story and he looked it over. He said that a couple of pieces were missing but that he could build new pieces and he would do the best he could to make it look primitive to match the rest of the piece. We told him to get to it whenever he could. A couple days later he called and said, “Tell Lisa, I got her cupboard done. “

We went back over to his workshop and loaded it up. This time we brought it to our house and put it in the barn. It would sit there for a couple more years as we were busy having two kids and building our auction business. Then this summer on a hot summer day I hauled that pie safe out in to the summer sun and started washing off the drops of mud from so many years ago and the saw dust. As the layers of dust and dirt were washed off, I fell more in love with that old pie safe. I painted the pieces that he had to rebuild and gave it a coat of polyurethane to seal in the cracks and chippy paint. Matt came home from work and moved it inside when it was dry. Here is what it looks like today-

So, to all the hardcore antiquers and wanna be fixer uppers- you never know what you are going to find on the side of the road…

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Reflections of 2017

1/1/2018

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The hustle and bustle of the Christmas season is behind us and 2018 has arrived. 2017 was a big year at Harry Lahr Auctions. Just over a year ago, we had our first auction in our new auction center. This year was full of auctions from 60-year antique collection, to an estate from New York, household sales and we started having Thursday night auctions. We sold antiques, primitives, stoneware, and more canning jars than we ever dreamed. We have celebrated personal milestones- our daughter, Mahala, started pre-school and proudly announced that she wanted to be an auctioneer when she grows up. Matt and I celebrated our fifth anniversary December 3rd. And our other future auctioneer Caleb turned 1 year old in March. We had new experiences- Matt and I attended the Red Wing Collector’s Society Midwinter Show together for the first time in February and we headed North for Matt’s first Oronoco Gold Rush Days in August. We ended the year getting our new auction software up and running. Along the way we have learned a lot, had some sleepless nights, and made new friends.

At the end of each year I always find myself reflecting on the year that has passed and look forward to the year that is ahead. This year is no different and if 2018 is anything like 2017, I can’t wait to see where 2018 takes us personally and professionally. Thank you to everyone that supported Matt and I and Harry Lahr Auctions over the past year. Thank you to all the consigners and families that have entrusted with your auctions. To all our wonderful customers that we have met that have attended our auctions in person, bid over the phone or checked our website or followed us on social media. To our friends, family and auction staff that have been right there with us over the past year- Thank you! We truly are living out our dream and we couldn’t and wouldn’t want to do it without you.

Below are a few pictures from 2017. Our first auction for 2018 is this Saturday, January 6th, we hope to see you there. Happy New Year! Lisa

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General Store Auction #1 October 7, 2017

10/15/2017

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In the antique world there are people that have collections. And then there are people that have amazing collections. Over the years, I had heard about a collector that had an amazing collection of general store and tobacco items. For years I would have done anything to see it. I never would have guessed that one day we would get the honor of auctioning it off.

One day we received a message from said collector and our first reaction was disbelief. A couple of messages and phone calls later, we learned that everything was in boxes and if we wanted to do the auction we could come get it. I have to admit the day Matt went to pick everything up I was majorly jealous. So, when he started unloading I had to help. I couldn’t resist opening a couple of boxes just to see what was inside, I wasn’t disappointed.

Prior to the auction we had had interest in items as far away as Canada. The day of the auction there were bidders on the phone from Arizona, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Rhode Island and Wisconsin. And bidders in house from Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and Wisconsin. The sale started strong from lot one all the way to the end of the sale.
Here are a few, ok a lot of my favorite items-

Lot #3- “Watt Pop” counter lollipop display

Lot #59- Salesman sample blue/white swirl enamel pan, Lava & Volcanic Enameled Ware

Lot #146- Mammie Roly Poly tobacco tin, Mayo’s Cut Plug, very good cond.

Lot #147-Child’s blue enamel tin tea set

Lot #152- Multi-colored “End of the Day” enamel tray, 12”x15”

Lot # 153- Singing Waiter/Opera Singer Roly Poly tobacco tin, Mayo’s Cut Plug

Lot #158- Tin litho Fairy Soap tray, 14”

Lot #159- Satisfied Customer/Business Man Roly Poly tin, Mayo’s Cut Plug

Lot #165- Store Keeper Roly Poly tobacco tin, U.S. Marine Cut Plug

Lot #180- Metal match holder advertising Garnavillo Hardware, Garnavillo, IA

Lot #194- Metal “Singing Man” cigar cutter, good paint

Lot #212- Palmer’s Chocolate Marshmallow store tin

Lot #280- Diamond Dyes counter display cabinet, original, good cond.

Lot #361- Wood dough bowl, 26”L

Lot #430- Store counter/display case on iron legs, 59”Lx39”Tx22”D, (2) glass shelves, sliding rear doors

Lot #471- Iron bed

Lot #480- Round rag rug, 75”

And of course, Advertising Stoneware. I am a Clayton County girl born and raised after all.
Lot #39- Red Wing Greek Key bowl adv. Wilke’s Store, St. Olaf, IA
Lot# 101- Stoneware bean pot adv. Grangaard’s, Monona, IA
Lot# 107- Red Wing bowl adv. Geo. Radloff, Farmersburg, IA
Lot #188- Stoneware bean pot adv. Geo. Radloff, Farmersburg, IA
Lot #196- Stoneware bowl adv. Grangaard’s, Monona, IA
And that is the behind the auction scoop. General Store Auction #2 will be held Saturday, October 21st at 9:30 a.m. Happy Bidding!

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The Bill Lukan Estate- From Michael Jackson posters to 19th Century Antiques

9/17/2017

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Last weekend, we had the honor of auctioning off the lifelong collection of Bill Lukan. Like most auctions it started with a phone call, but this one was a little different from the very beginning. I was home with the kids on a “normal” day when the phone rang, I answered and a member of the family handling the estate started explaining the situation and asked a few questions. She explained that Bill had lived in New York, then moved to Florida and they were interested in us doing his auction. Looking back on the phone call now, I remember thinking- “Is this for real?” and “How is the stuff ever going to get here?”

I passed along he message to Matt and he called them back. That night when he got home from work, we chatted about our days and he too was almost in a state of disbelief. Some phone calls and emails later, plans were made to have the items delivered to Dyersville. Matt arranged a time to meet up with the family and look things over. From the pictures that family had shared with us, we knew there was some really good stuff, but we quickly discovered there was some fabulous stuff that we may never see again. Matt took some photos and made arrangements for the auction.

A few weeks later, we started moving things to our auction center and started photographing each item. I am always curious as why people collect what they do. It was evident from the very beginning that Bill was an interesting guy. As we set up for the auction, we felt like we got to know Bill through the stories that the family shared and the items that he collected. We learned the he loved to travel and purchase items on his travels around the world. We learned that he loved Christmas and would decorate his house each Christmas with a huge light display, so large in fact he earned the nickname Light Show Bill. We learned that he loved to have fun and spend time with his friends and family. We learned that he loved art of all kinds. We learned that he always loved Iowa and even though his life and his travels took him all around the world, he never forgot his childhood in Dyersville, IA. When I was unpacking a box of items for the auction, I came across a few personal photos. One of the photos was of Bill sitting in a chair with a huge smile on his face. As I held the photo, I thought of what it would be like to have met him. I would have loved to hear about his travels and all of the interesting places that he saw. I would have loved to hear stories about the people he met along the way and the fun times they shared. I never had the opportunity to meet Bill in life but through his auction, I felt like I got to know him a little. And he was indeed a very interesting guy.

Here are a few of my favorite items from the auction-

Lot #5- J. Chein tin wind-up roller coaster

Lot #140-Great River Road Iowa sign-(Lots of good memories for me on that road.)

Lot #196- Louis Phillipe brass 6 light chandelier

Lot #227- Mother’s Oats advertising framed print, Mother’s Boy

Lot # 262-“Portrait of a Gentleman”, pastel on paper, framed (Sir, I wish I knew who you were and could hear your story.)

Many of you have asked about the early wood carousel type wood horse from Ike’s Park, Dyersville, IA that was originally listed on the auction sale bill. As we were preparing for the auction, we discovered in Bill’s items that it was his wish that the carousel horse be returned to Dyersville and be donated to the Dyersville Area Historical Society. We, along with Bill’s family wanted to honor his wishes.

Thank you to everyone that attended Bill’s auction, I hope that you enjoy the items you purchased as much as Bill did. To the family of Bill Lukan, thank you for entrusting us with Bill’s auction and sharing your memories of him. It was an honor. Thank you!

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Adventures in Antiquing- Oronoco Gold Rush Days

8/25/2017

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If you haven’t figured out by now, I LOVE ANTIQUES!!! And I never pass up a good antique show. For many years, I planned my life around attending my favorite shows. Several years ago, I started working for an antique dealer and I got an education on the antique world. I worked at the shop while he did antique shows and bought and sold all over the country.

One of the very first antique shows I ever attended was in Oronoco, MN better known as Gold Rush Days. Oronoco is a town of around 1,400 people just north of Rochester, MN. The whole town comes together to put together three days of antiques, food and fun. People rent out their yards for dealers to set up their booths and for $5 you can get a great parking spot in someone’s backyard. The whole town smells like food with food trucks and the fire departments annual pancake breakfast.

When my husband Matt and I first started dating, I asked him if he ever goes to antique shows and he said that he did but he had never been to Oronoco, he had never even heard of it!!! I made a mental note that we needed to make the trip and go together. Flash forward five years, three moves, two babies and lot of auctions later we still had never made it to a Gold Rush Days.

This year, because he has been working so hard at building our auction business, sometimes working 7 days a week. (Ok, not sometimes, a lot.) I wanted to make Father’s Day and his birthday extra special. Months in advance I wrote in BIG letters to not schedule an auction the weekend of August 18th-20th on the calendar. A couple weeks later, he agreed to do an auction for another auctioneer that Saturday. So, technically he didn’t schedule an auction but this would throw a wrench into my plan. Luckily, I have fantastic friends that understood and were willing to change their plans to watch the kids. I wasn’t quite sure when to mention it to him, so the night of his birthday after presents and cake I asked him if he wanted to go on a date with me and finally go to Gold Rush Days.

The week of the show rolled around and I was getting excited- the food, the antiques and getting to hopefully see a lot of friends that I hadn’t seen in years. One important thing any antiquer must do prior to an outdoor show is check the weather. And the weather for that Friday when we planned to go didn’t look good, but we were determined to forge on. I got out my rubber chore boots that have gotten me through the mud at a few other antique shows, got ‘em cleaned up and put in the car. I packed some other essentials, an umbrella, comfortable shoes and a purse that is big enough to carry what you need but not big enough to knock something over you can’t afford or too big that your shoulder hurts by noon.

The next morning, we got the kids out of bed and put them in the car in their pajamas and headed north. After dropping the kids off, we forged on to Oronoco on US Highway 52. The drive to Oronoco is really pretty. I love driving through all the little towns along the way especially Harmony, Lanesboro and Preston.

When attending an antique show the earlier you arrive the better. We arrived just before 9:00 a.m. and the streets were packed with people. We found a place to park just a short walk to the show. It wasn’t raining but we took our umbrellas just in case. Gold Rush Days has a great mix of vendors and dealers. There really is something for everyone from high end antiques, new merchandise, crafts, direct sales representatives, and rusty junk.

It is really temping to rush as fast as you can to see everything, but at an antique show this size you won’t, so don’t even try. One of the things I love the most about antique shows, and Gold Rush Days is the perfect opportunity, is to experience the show and getting to meet new people. Take your time, walk around and visit every booth. Even if it doesn’t look like it has “your type” of antiques, take a look, you never know what you might find and don’t be afraid to talk to people. Strike up a conversation with the dealers, ask about what they are selling or if they have a shop back home. Believe me you will meet some really cool people. I know because many of them have become friends. And don’t be afraid to ask someone you don’t know if you can take a picture of his really cool top hat.

At any antique show, there is one guarantee- you will always see something that you have never seen before and may never see again. Once an antique is gone, it is lost forever and it can never be replaced. Find out what you like, collect what you love and enjoy the hunt. The people you will meet and the relationships and memories you make along the way will be just as special as what you buy. And there will always be something that gets away from you or you will fall in love with something that just doesn’t fit in your budget. For me at Oronoco this year it was a big, beautiful seed counter….I tried to convince Matt that we need to buy a new house to accommodate it, which he quickly replied, “No.” So I took a picture instead.

A few of my favorite things at this year’s show was-

Primitive bathtub with original wooden rim. I couldn’t understand why Matt wouldn’t let me buy this one, maybe because we already have a bathtub in our barn just in case we ever remodel….

Pie Lady Sign, everyone loves pie, right????

A sign of a dapper gentleman selling real estate. He is soooo cute!!!

Salesman sample suit.

Signs, signs and more signs. Can you tell that I love signs???

And of course, crocks!!! No collection is complete without some really cool crocks.

And I kinda have a fascination with weird, medically kinds of stuff. Like a skeleton in a box.

A head in a glass bubble.

Or this awesome primitive, metal dental cabinet.

Not to be outdone by an 1860 ledger from a Wisconsin State Prison.

And a couple of old favorites-

Like COWS!!!

And fretwork and tin ceiling tiles. Just look at that chippy paint!

My husband’s favorite part of the day….. the Barbeque!

For more information on Oronoco Gold Rush Days and to start planning your trip next year. Go to http://goldrushmn.com/ or Like their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/OronocoGoldRush/
Until next time Happy Antiquing!!!

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Adventures in Antiquing- Oronoco Gold Rush Days

Lisa Lahr, Author

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