This weekend I picked up memories, more than anything else. Went to the Philly Show on Saturday with my youngest 12 year daughter. I used to go to Philly often, with my oldest daughter, but she had little interest in the show and I hadn’t been back in years. I didn’t have any particular hopes of picking up much, as I know memorabilia isn’t in great abundance there, and typically over priced. But I was in the market for some T3s and T201 cards, so I thought what the heck - a good way to kill a very rainy day, get my fix at looking at cool things, and it got me out of Holiday shopping.
My daughter is a “picker” at heart, like me, and was excited to go to the show - she had never been. She isn’t (before now) into Sports antiques, but appreciates deeply what I collect. She and I often go to estate sales together looking for anything old and interesting, and she has quite a growing stash of various vintage and antique smalls herself.
The drive was about 2 hours in the pouring rain, but together we spent 3 of the best hours I have ever had at the show, and that I have had in this hobby in a long while. She soaked up and loved every minute of it, learning about various pieces of memorabilia and cards. As I have told my friends, I don’t get to “play with” many people in this hobby so I cherished every minute with her. Every piece she wanted to know the history behind.
On the card front, struck out on any T3s or T201s as prices were not reasonable. We did have fun digging through some bargain bins and picked up several groupings – none of which are rare or unique, but the prices were right and my daughter got a kick out of starting some of her own memorabilia collection (my wife will now kill me
): about a dozen 1950s college pins; two S21 MURAD college track athlete silks – Columbia and Annapolis; several T51 Murad college series cards; a couple Virgina Brights Cigs N48 Woman ball players cuts; and a nice early Goldsmith basemitt for display.
A highlight was striking up a lengthy meet with Diane and Doug McElwain, from Sport&Spool Antiques, who I see at shows from time to time. Their booth was unique, as it was the only true antique equipment booth – it stood out from the rest and was gorgeous as ususal. Chatting with them was rewarding for both of us, and Doug and Diane gave us a fair deal on a very nice 1920 Spalding Discus (I am a sucker for anything Spalding), a beefy Spalding Catchers mitt, and a nice Cornell pennant for my daughter’s room.
We can’t wait to go to the next show together. You can click the link below to see some of our pickups.
http://antiquesportscollector.com/Re...dsDec2014.html