The 44th annual Antiques Festival, sponsored by the Association of Volunteers, was held at the Sharonville Convention Center. The weekend featured 33 antiques dealers from 18 states, Canada and the United Kingdom.

• Photos: Cincinnati Antiques Festival

In addition to the three days of lectures, raffles, boutiques and, of course, antiques, close to 360 attended the Preview Party to raise funds for the Convalescent Hospital for Children, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

Organizers hope to raise $100,000 toward their four-year pledge of $360,000 to purchase a Lokomat, an automated locomotion therapy treadmill device, for the Occupational and Physical Therapy Department of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

BY TERRY KOVEL

Some antiques are so rare and strange that they are classed as “what’s its” by collectors. Sometimes they are also so interesting they can sell for high prices.

This year, two auction houses offered “Victorian glass parlor fountains” — items that were “what’s its” to most collectors. A few years ago, only 12 examples were known.

Researchers have discovered that the fountains were patented by Joseph Storer in 1871. A metal stand holds a basin at the top, and underneath it a pair of glass globes attached to a hollow metal rod could swing back and forth.

Water was put in the upper basin and forced down into the globes and a series of tubes, then up again as an 8-inch water spout or fountain. The globes moved up and down and the guests were delighted with the unusual centerpiece.

The fountains, about 20 inches high, were held in a frame made by James Tufts of Boston, a silver-plate manufacturer. The invention was called a “perpetual fountain” or “automatic fountain.”

A fancy ruby glass fountain with etched designs sold originally for $50 — very expensive for a Victorian table decoration.

Q: I have a Hoody’s peanut butter pail with a red lid. The pail pictures children on a teeter-totter. It’s in very good condition. What can you tell me about when it was made and the company that
made it?

A: A.C. Hoodenpyle, a Dutch immigrant whose nickname was “Hoody,” began selling roasted peanuts in 1913. He opened a store in Oregon and began selling peanut butter under the name
“Hoody’s Famous Peanut Butter.” The red 1-pound peanut butter tins pictured a girl and a boy in 1920s-era clothes on a seesaw that was balanced on a big peanut shell with the words “Hoody’s Goodies” on it. Tins had either a plain tin lid or a
red slip lid. After Hoodenpyle died, Valentine Brown bought the company. Harvest Manor Farms, a snack food company in El Paso, Texas, bought the company in 1994. The brand name is still used. The tins are rare and the graphics are
popular with collectors. A tin with a red lid is worth $400 or more.

Q: We still own the bookcase my husband’s mother bought for him in the 1940s, when he was a child. It was made by the Gunn Furniture Co. of Grand Rapids, Mich. Can you tell us something about
the bookcase’s history?

A: Gunn Furniture Co.’ s history can be traced back to 1874, when William S. Gunn started selling furniture at his Grand Rapids hardware store. In 1890 he incorporated his own manufacturing
firm, the Gunn Folding Bed Co. Because the popularity of folding beds was waning fast, three years later he changed his company’s name to the Gunn Furniture Co. and started making desks, bookcases, files and other office furniture. The
woods he used included walnut, oak and mahogany. The firm was sold in 1953 to Bergsma Brothers, Inc., also of Grand Rapids. Bergsma Brothers closed in 1985.

Q: I have a Titian Ware Royal Ivory plate by Adams that says Adams was established in 1657. Your Web site mentions that the firm was founded in 1769. Can you tell me why the date is different?

A: Several members of the Adams family operated potteries in the Staffordshire district of England. The earliest pottery operated by a member of the family was Brick House Works, established in
Burslem in 1657 by Robert Adams and his son, John. William Adams & Sons was established in 1769 and operated the Greengates Works in Tunstall. The 1657 date was added to the William Adams mark in 1896 even though the date
refers to a different but related Adams company. Adams became part of the Wedgwood Group in 1966 and some Adams designs continued to be made with the Adams backstamp. The Greengates Works closed in 1992.

Q: I am interested in learning the year my old brass NCR cash register was made and what it’s worth. It’s a Model 356G. The first patent date is May 23, 1893, and the last is Aug. 30, 1910. The serial
number is 1283080.

A: National Cash Register Co., which dates back to 1884, made your cash register in 1913. You can check serial numbers of all NCR cash registers at the Dayton History Web site,
DaytonHistory.org. An NCR Model 356G cash register sold recently for $950.

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By Karen Workman, Journal Register News Service

Dust off those antiques and get ready to find out their value.

An Antique Appraisal Day, reminiscent of the popular public television show “Antiques Roadshow,” will be hosted by the Oakland Township Historical Society on Sunday in the Rochester Community House.

“We’ve had things appraised as high as $50,000,” said Colleen Barkham, a historical society member and organizer of the event. “It was a needlepoint that came from England — 300 years old.”

Nine local appraisers are donating their time for the event, which is a fundraiser for the historical society.

Todd Cunningham, an appraiser of Native American artifacts, valued an Apache basket brought in during last year’s event at $4,000.

“You never know what’s going to come in,” said Cunningham, a Rochester Hills resident.

His journey to becoming a certified appraiser began years ago during a social studies unit he was teaching to his fifth grade classroom. Cunningham was using simulation activities to teach the children about Native American culture.

“I thought, if I could purchase items to bring to the classroom it would enhance the lessons even more,” he said.

Along the way, he found himself becoming more and more interested in Native American artifacts and amazed by the people who were able to put a dollar value on them.

“So I started looking up how to get certified and joined the American Society of Appraisers,” Cunningham said. “Basically, you read, read and read, visit museums as often as you can and more than anything,

just study.”

He began participating in local appraisal days and enjoys seeing the rare items that come before him, like a stone mallet a man said he got from a Native American chief he met in northern Michigan.

“It was used to break up buffalo bones for the marrow and was still intact, with the rawhide handle and all,” Cunningham said. “As an appraiser of Native American art and artifacts, when there’s 500 different Indian nations and each one is unique, you’re bound to run into all kinds of things you’ve never seen before.”

Fred Flemings, also a county resident, will be at the event appraising items ranging from pottery and china to porcelain, lamps and other collectibles.

The retired General Motors marketing employee has been an antique dealer for 37 years and an appraiser for almost as long. He plans to bring 40 to 60 books to the Rochester event, which is just a small portion of the thousands of reference books he keeps.

“No appraiser has everything in his head. And if he does, don’t trust him,” Flemings said.

Flemings said that last year, a young man came in and plopped down a box on the table before him.

“He said ‘I’ve got a lamp for you to see,’ and I said, ‘If there’s a lamp in there, I want you to be more careful with it,’” Flemings said.

The man told Flemings of how the lamp was a college gift to him and each year, he’d throw it in the back seat of his car, put some clothes over top to hide it and drive it back and forth to his dorm room.

“This was a $10,000 to $12,000 Tiffany lamp and there was no damage to it,” Flemings said. “He was startled; he just sat back and looked at the ceiling.”

The lamp was marked on the bottom, and Flemings encourages everyone to check their antiques for markings that can indicate who made them or how old they are.

The biggest piece of advice he has, though, is to write a letter to accompany any items of value.

“When I encounter a nice piece that’s a family piece and will stay in the family, I say, ‘Your relative, who you will pass this on to and they will pass it on, in 500 to 1,000 years they won’t have any idea who the prior owner is,’” Flemings said.

He encourages people to write an explanation of the item and how it came to be owned, include a photo and be sure to sign and date the letter.

For those wondering if their item is of value, the cost of a verbal appraisal is $5, or $20 for a written appraisal. There’s also an entry donation of $2.

Visitors can bring numerous items, visit more than one appraiser and bring photos of items that may be too large to move.

The Wyandotte County Museum on Saturday will hold its own version of PBS’ popular “Antiques Roadshow.”

Bring in your stuff — military artifacts, fine art, furniture, jewelry, etc. — and professionals will appraise it. Several of the appraisers are associated with Manion’s International Auction House.

The fair will be 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the George Meyn Community Center in Wyandotte County Park, 126th Street and State Avenue in Bonner Springs. All proceeds will benefit the museum, which is facing a $100,000 shortfall.

If you register in advance, the cost will be $10 to have one piece appraised or $25 for three. For walk-ins, the cost will be $20 for one piece or $40 for two or more. For more information, go to wycomuseum.word press.com or call 913-573-5002.

| Dawn Bormann, dbormann@kcstar.com

ISLAND HEIGHTS — TV personality, art historian and certified antiques appraiser Dr. Lori will hold an antique appraisal event from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, event organizers said.

Dr. Lori has been featured on “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart, Fine Living Network and DirecTV’s “Treasure Seekers” and has a column syndicated in more than 85 newspapers and magazines.

The event will be at the Island Heights Elementary School gym at 115 Summit Ave. The entrance to gym is on Lake Avenue.

Admission is $6 per person, with a $1-off coupon available at the borough branch of the Ocean County Library. The cost for appraisals is $10 per item. Arrive early for tickets.

For more information, call the library at 732-270-6266.

Visitors to this year’s Historic Alexandria Antiques Show can receive free verbal appraisals by antiques expert Todd Peenstra.

Washington, DC (Vocus) October 30, 2009 — Visitors to this year’s Historic Alexandria Antiques Show can receive free verbal appraisals of their treasures by antiques expert and professional appraiser Todd Peenstra.

The Historic Alexandria Antiques Show takes place November 13-15 at the Holiday Inn Historic District. Hours of the show are Friday, November 13, 11 am-8 pm; Saturday, November 14, 11 am-6 pm; and Sunday, November 15, 12 noon-5 pm.

Show admission tickets can be purchased at the door for $15 each or for $12 each at www.ArmacostAntiquesShows.com. Show admission is free on Friday only from 5 pm to 8 pm.

Verbal appraisals will be limited to two items per visitor.

“This is a great chance to learn if you have hidden wealth,” says Bob James, president, Armacost Antiques Shows. “Todd Peenstra has worked with renowned collectors the world over and brings extraordinary knowledge and insight to appraising.”

The Historic Alexandria Antiques Show brings together 30 top-ranking antiques, fine art and jewelry dealers from around the US and abroad. It will feature thousands of pieces of period furniture, paintings, prints, folk art, tapestries, textiles, carpets, lamps, ceramics, glass, jewelry and unusual decorative accessories, every one backed by a guarantee of authenticity.

The show is located at the Holiday Inn Historic District at 625 First Street. Free parking is available.

Proceeds from the show benefit the Historic Alexandria Foundation. The foundation awards grants annually to an array of preservation projects and conducts an important preservation awards program.

Separate tickets are required for the preview party, November 12, 6:30 pm-9:30 pm, and for all other special events. More information is available at 703.549.5811.

About Armacost Antiques Shows
Armacost Antiques Shows lets people of all ages discover the simple pleasure of owning fine antiques. Visitors to our shows can shop, look and learn in friendly surroundings, knowing they can buy with a guarantee of authenticity. All shows benefit nonprofits, including museums, churches, social service agencies and preservation groups. The nonprofit sponsors help generate enthusiasm for antiques while delivering much-needed financial support for their institutions and communities. More information is available at www.ArmacostAntiquesShows.com.

###

Armacost Antiques Shows
Robert James
202 537 1169
E-mail Information

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:Ralph Willard, antiques dealer turned antiques show manager, continued his charming country antiques show in the small village of Round Top, September 29 through October 3. Named for the facility where it is held, the Rifle Hall Antiques Show was purchased from Susan and Bo Franks by Willard in 2008, after more than 40 years in operation. Willard had been an exhibitor for all those years, missing only one show. He is working hard to sustain the show in a difficult economic time with some minor changes and improvements to the operation.

Dealer loyalty is strong at the show, with most exhibitors not giving up their space until they are ready to retire. Mary Wilmarth has been in the show “forever,” according to her husband, but this was her last hurrah before retirement. Her collection of fine early American household pieces and folk art was selling quickly.

Several gentlemen from the Northeast were exhibiting together in two large spaces in the back of the hall. Thurston Nichols, Breinigsville, Penn., Frank Martin, Allentown, Penn., and Mario Pollo, Woodstock, N.Y., were showing large furniture and an assortment of small antiques and early American art. Reported to be from Pennsylvania, there was a red and green painted step back hutch; a stack of pantry boxes was 12 inches high — they were likely to have been made by Shakers, tapered and in original paint; a collection of early samplers and more small wood boxes and art were on view.

Don Schweikert of Auditorium Antiques from North Carolina was selling an early walnut linen press he said was from Virginia, and a corner cupboard, a Southern piece, which was also made from walnut.

Burleson, Texas, is the stomping grounds for several dealers at this event. Melanie Johnson, Crescent Moon Antiques, was offering an early sawbuck table, a schoolmaster’s desk on stand, an early fireplace mantel and several painted cupboards. The Buckinghams, Karen and Charlie, offered a rope sprung fainting couch in a blue hopsacking material, a yellow painted sideboard and more furniture and folk art pieces.

Oriental rugs and early English and American furniture were the primary components of the collection offered by Paul and Shirley Cox, Salado, Texas. Jean Doty travels from her home in Beaumont, Texas, to New England to shop for many of the pieces she offered at this show. An early open cupboard in greenish blue paint was filled with interesting small objects, including redware, iron lighting, pewter and some woodenware.

The big top tent in the yard was filled to overflowing with more antiques. Heller Washam was offering a collection of early furniture from its Maine and Connecticut homes. Two pieces could be described as architectural: one was a fireplace mantel and the other a formerly built-in corner cupboard.

The Michael and Sally Whittemore collection was filled with folk art and also useable things: painted chairs, tables and weathervanes dominated the selection, which also included a giant grasshopper.

Fine antiques and smalls were in good supply as well. From Norman, Okla., Lou McGee was selling silver, mostly from America. Tina and Pat Farley, Merriam, Kan., were selling toys — highly collectible, early iron toys, that is.

Ralph Willard conducts this show twice each year and will be repeating the fun next spring, March 30–April 3. For information,

www.ralphwillard.com
or 214-826-2584.