Reminiscing about the "Good-Ole-Days" in this Hobby

[brianp-beme]

Originally Posted by zimp

I got back into the hobby in 1967....so many great finds back then,,,,
T3 FIND
THE YEAR WAS 1971 AND SOME FRIENDS AND I WERE GOING TO THE ANNUAL GETTYSBURG STREET FLEA MARKET ON A SATURDAY…..WE LEFT AROUND 2:00 IN THE MORNING SO WE WOULD GET THERE ABOUT DAYBREAK….IT HAD BEEN RAINING OUR WHOLE TRIP AND WE WERE WORRIED THAT THE FLEA MARKET WOULD NOT GO ON……WHEN WE ARRIVED WE WERE TOLD THAT THE FORECAST WAS RAIN ALL DAY SO THE FLEA MARKET WAS CANCELED UNTIL THE NEXT DAY….NOW WE HAVE TO KILL A WHOLE DAY IN GETTYSBURG…..WE STARTED HITTING ANTIQUE SHOPS IN THE AREA BUT FOUND NOTHING…..THEN WE STARTED BRANCHING OUT TO THE COUNTRYSIDE…..ABOUT 1:00 IN THE AFTERNOON AFTER RIDING AROUND FOR WHAT SEEMED TO BE 50 TO 75 MILES WE SEE A SIGN THAT SAID ANTIQUES BUT ALL IT WAS, WAS A FARMHOUSE AND A GREENHOUSE…..MY FRIEND GOT OUT OF THE CAR AND WENT UP TO THE GREENHOUSE AND CAME BACK AND SAID THERE WERE OLD BASEBALL PICTURES LINING THE WALLS OF THE GREENHOUSE….I JUMPED OUT OF THE CAR AND SEE WHAT WAS THERE…..IT WAS NOTHING BUT T3’S LINING THE WALLS…..I COULDN’T BELIEVE MY EYES….AT THAT TIME I OWNED ONE T3….JUST MY LUCK THE PLACE WAS CLOSED….WE WENT TO THE FARM HOUSE AND KNOCKED FOR ABOUT TEN MINUTES…..FINALLY AN OLDER GENTLEMAN ANSWERS THE DOOR AND LET US IN TO THE GREENHOUSE……THE GENTLEMAN SAID HE WANTED $5.00 EACH FOR THE PICTURES….NOW I ONLY HAD $300.00 SO I STARTED PICKING CARDS FROM THE WALL….THE FIRST ONE I PICKED WAS TY COBB FROM THERE JUST NAMES I KNEW….I GOT UP TO 25 OF THEM AND THOUGHT I’D BETTER SAVE SOME MONEY FOR THE FLEA MARKET TOMORROW….SO WE LEFT AT LEAST ANOTHER 25 OF THEM ON THE WALLS…..HEADED BACK TO GETTYSBURG FOR A MOTEL AND REST….THE NEXT DAY AT THE FLEA MARKET WHICH LINED THE STREETS OF GETTYSBURG…..SEARCHED HALF OF THE DAY AND ONLY FOUND ONE OLD JUDGE CABINET CARD OF HARRY STOVEY FOR A DOLLAR…..NOW WE ARE GOING TO HEAD BACK TO THE GREENHOUSE TO BUY THE REST OF THE T3’S……WE RODE AROUND FOR HOURS AND NEVER FOUND THE PLACE AGAIN…..WELL AT LEAST I GOT 25 OF THEM…..WISHED THEY HAD GPS’S BACK THEN..

That was a great story and find. It is almost as if it was yanked out of a vintage collector's dream. And like a dream it can't be all fulfilling (of course you can't locate the place when you go back to buy the rest).

Thanks for sharing! And at least you probably rescued most of the real good ones.

Brian