Fond Memories of Our Jockey Cycle

We will never forget our Jockey-Cycle, which we sold some years ago, so we thought it would be fun to get out the old photos and share our memories of it.

Made sometime during the 1930's or 1940's, this is a very rare collectible sought after by bicycle and other vintage toy collectors. This velocipede was made by the J. E. DONALSON MFG. CO. in NORTH KANSAS CITY, MO. Some people incorrectly call the company "Donaldson", so you will find mention of it spelled both ways.

Instead of the usual pedaling action, the rider pushes on the foot bars and pushes and pulls on the handles. The seat then pumps up and down and the vehicle moves forward or backward. The small front wheel gives this jockey cycle a very tight turning radius, while the large back wheels and wide stance make it surprisingly hard to turn over.



The original nameplate on ours was still easily readable, but I was not able to get a very good picture of it up close, due to the glare on the metal. I'm not sure if it had been re-painted some time in the past or not. There were some light red brush marks on the nameplate. That is the only clue that it had possibly been repainted.



All the spokes were in good condition, the tires were in excellent shape, and the mechanism worked perfectly. There were many small areas where the paint was missing, but none of the areas detracted from the overall appearance, in my opinion. There was no evidence of rust.

This toy was played with by at least 3, maybe 4, generations of our family. It was a hand me down from my husband's cousin's family, so hubby and his brother both played on it. Then our two children enjoyed it for many years when they would spend time with their Mamaw and Papaw. Eventually the girls got too big to be interested in it, and his parents needed to get rid of it, so they could make more space for the growing girls to spend the night. So we brought it home with us. We put it in the basement, where it stayed until our grandson was old enough to ride it.

Our grandson would beg to ride it every time he came to visit, and it was great fun watching him get so much pleasure from it.

It was sometime not long after he had grown tired of it that we got bitten by the eBay bug, and I decided to see what the Jockey-Cycle might be worth, if anything. To say the least, we were both flabbergasted to find out that it was extremely rare and very valuable! So by the time our twin granddaughters were old enough to enjoy it, sad to say, they didn't get a chance to ride it. Once we found out how valuable it was we just couldn't take the chance they would tear it up!

So we sold it on eBay. Rather than chance it being damaged in shipment, the buyers drove several states to pick it up themselves. They were happy to get it, and we were happy to have sold it for a very good price.

On a whim the other night hubby decided to see if people were still collecting them and found a forum where folks were talking about some pitifully worn and damaged ones. It really made us realize just how wonderful ours had been. We also found a site with pictures of all but ruined ones, which is evidently the condition many are found in today.

So, we wanted to share our photos and story, so people could see what an original one looks like.

FOUND - INFORMATION about POSSIBLE JEWEL TEA COMPANY Premium TEA POT

A collector named Dottie was nice enough to let us know that Joan's tea pot was probably made around 1900 and would be worth about $150, if it's in good condition.

Joan writes:

I have a brown ceramic tea pot with , I think, pewter trim. I thought my grandmother got it as a premium from the Jewel Tea Co.
The tea pot stands about 6 1/2 inches tall. It has a rather ornate pewter spout, with attached lid and handle. It is chocolate brown with speckles in it. On the bottom it is stamped "Manning Quality Bowman, Meriden,Conn.08273".

I had another one, which was slightly large, probably about 7 1/2 inches tall. I took it to an antique shop on consignment, and it went out of business, and I never saw it again.

Any info would be appreciated.

If you can help Joan with more information about her teapot, please Contact Us or Comment below, using POST CODE #020209-1 in your comment.

Bless This House O Lord We Pray

We went to an Estate Sale last week and found something I've never run across before. In the linen closet, stacked together neatly, was a HUGE stack of calendar towels, with dates stretching back through several decades. I thought I had hit the Motherlode!!

But, this wise lady had used her interesting towels after the year passed, and many were too faded to purchase. She knew what only a few apparently know ... that these linen calendar towels are absolutely GREAT for drying dishes, particularly glassware. They don't leave any lint or smears behind. So she not only had a beautiful 2008 calendar on her kitchen wall, but had enjoyed her collection every day, as they were displayed on the towel rack, and as she put her dishes away.

We did find several to buy that were still in very good condition, though, that I will be adding to the ones we already have for sale in our Collectibles Catalog. I always look for these interesting calendar towels when we go on our Friday Date Day, because they are colorful, are easy for me to store, and they don't break in shipment!

And I must not be the only one who enjoys them, because I've lost count of how many we have sold over the years. Some are bought because of the year they show, others for the attractive pictures, and some, such as this one might be, for the sayings that are written on them. But whatever the reason for the purchase, not many of them stay in stock for very long.

I Love Vintage Tin Containers

Yes, I love old tins.

It's one of my "worst" weaknesses when we go to Estate Sales, because I just don't seem to be able to resist them. It takes some careful picking through those up for sale to be sure that we come home with the ones that are not dented or showing signs of rust, but the time spent being picky is certainly worth it.

I'm particularly fond of the old advertising food tins, which can be cleaned up and used in a display, but can also hold the original food, too. The old Nabisco tin shown here can be used to hold the same number of crackers as the 4 stack box of crackers.

I even keep all my odds and ends of spools of thread and sewing notions in an old tin.

Do you like old storage containers, or do you have a display of vintage tins? Do you give homemade baked goods gifts in old Christmas tins? What other uses can you think of for using these fantastic old containers? I look forward to hearing your ideas, as it may give me an "excuse" to go buy some more! LOL!

Interesting Vintage Collectible HO Train Set up for Auction Soon

I received this email from John, who has a unique item going up for auction at Stout Auctions in PA. It sounds so unusual and interesting that I thought I would share it with you.

---

A toy train set with cross appeal will be going on the auction block in June. It is a limited edition item, never offered for sale to the public. It is new in box, and still has the original shipping shrink wrap around the box. The certificate of authenticity states the above, and further explains that it was offered as a premium to salesmen for selling parts and accessories.

It is the Zenith Video Express, and all the cars have the Zenith Radio and Television logo, and I know one box car has " Chromacolor " on the side.

He continues:

I do have a personal stake in this and I will explain! My mother died on the first of February of this year, and was preceeded by my father 2 years prior. The train set was given to him, as he was a Field Engineer for Zenith. I did not want to sell it here in the boondocks of PA, so I sent it to Stout Auctions, since they specialize in train hobbyist auctions.

Unfortunately, I purchased a digital camera after sending it to Stout Auctions, so I have no picture. They do sell catalogs of upcoming auctions, but I know that you can personally contact them, and they would probably send you a picture. I will try to describe it the best my 53 year old memory can muster.

The set was manufactured exclusively for the Zenith Radio and Television Corporation by Bachmann. It is HO scale and contains the locomotive and four other cars laid sideways, in the original box through the clear plastic windows. The outer, cosmetic parts of the cars are some form of heavy duty plastic. The outer shrink wrap has never been touched, save for a small tear, and a slight indentation on one of the plastic windows just beneath. No damage to the car underneath! All of the colors on both the display box and train are as vivid as the day produced. It has never been in a high heat, or direct sunlight situation.

In closing, link/contact info is: www.stoutauctions.com, e mail Katy ( Really nice girl ) katy@stoutauctions.com, ph # 724.528.1500.

---

Sounds interesting, doesn't it??!!

Need Help Finding JULY, 1982 Issue of COMPUTE! MAGAZINE

Terry is searching for the July, 1982 issue of Compute! Magazine (Issue 26, Vol. 4, No. 7). He would like to purchase one or more copies (depending on the price) as it has an article written by his future father-in-law! If you have this magazine or know where he might locate it, please Contact Us.

I think it would help a lot if he could post his request on a computer collectibles forum, so if someone could suggest a place for him to post his request that would be great!

Finding the GOOD STUFF at Estate Sales is Getting Harder

We've been going to yard sales and Estate Sales almost every Friday for several years now as part of our Date Day. And we always have a good time, just because we are together. Oh, we're together at home, too. But we are doing our own thing - me on the computer and hubby reading a newspaper or using his computer. Not exactly activities that lead to paying much attention to each other. That's what makes Fridays so special for us, as we carry on more conversation in that one day than we probably do all the rest of the days of the week combined. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but it sure feels that way sometimes.

But of late the sales have been much less unique. It seems like all the paper items that fascinate us so much - all the real junk - has been thrown out before we get there. Hubby has said more than once that the big bags of garbage at the curb are where most of the items we would be interested in probably are.

There's been much less to rummage around through for most of this year. We still have a good time, but we're not finding as many treasures as we used to. That has led us to spending more and more time looking for the plush animals and soft dolls for our Dirty Butter Plush Animal Shoppe. At least we can still enjoy the hunt for those hard to find baby toys that people sell, not realizing how valuable they will be to a family who are desperate to replace some lost lovie.

We have kept a few of the treasured memories from our vintage finds. We have one 1800's autograph book of the lady's friends that is very interesting reading. They didn't just sign a name, but wrote short poems and notes to each other. And there's a lock of hair sewn into it. I used to take it to school and show it to my students and read a few of the entries to them.

I recently ran across a website where they sell an amazing number of old diaries, along with some handwritten letters from some famous people, and also some extremely old letters from everyday folks. If you are as fascinated by these windows into a time gone by you might enjoy looking at Tuscon Tiques Collectibles. I certainly enjoyed seeing all the interesting letters and diaries.

I can't imagine how they could have accumulated so many different hand written ephemera, but they have renewed my interest in this type of collecting and made me hope that we will again run across that perfect Estate Sale, where all the "good stuff" was not thrown away before they started the sale.

Daddy's Car is on eBay this Week

I did it. I finally bit the bullet and put the ad for Daddy's car on eBay for this week. I had so hoped that someone local would buy it, but we don't live in an affluent area, and all that most people saw was an old car. Those who did appreciate what a unique automobile it is can't afford it. So, after having it on Craigslist for a week with no inquiries, it was time to try eBay. After all, we have a Feedback rating of 1187 there, and an excellent reputation.

I don't like the format that eBay uses for selling automobiles at all, and really do think my own website presentation of Daddy's car is a thousand times better. But, it's a matter of getting the right person to see it.

I put the ad together and then spent about a half hour talking myself into and out of and then into pushing the button to submit it. There's no doubt about it. It has been so much harder for me to give up that car than I would ever have anticipated. Much, much harder than the house, since one of our daughters bought it.

You might wonder why I chose to put a photo of the engine on this post. If you have ever taken the time to look at some of the listings on eBay for vintage cars, you would know that most of the time they look like rusty pieces of junk, unless someone has already restored it and is selling it for up in the 20 and 30 thousand dollar range, with some much higher than that.

The contrast between the way Daddy took care of this engine and the way most of the other engines look that are up for bid is dramatic.

So, I really do hope it sells this week. If it doesn't I'll have to go through that emotional struggle again deciding to re-list it or not.

Finally Getting Serious about Selling Daddy's Car

Back some time ago I wrote about getting Daddy's car back in running condition and putting it out in the yard with a FOR SALE sign on it. We posted a FIRM price on it, so we would not be bothered by lots of local folks thinking it might be a $500 car. We have had plenty of people stop, a few who sounded like they would be back with the money almost immediately, a couple who seemed to really appreciate what a gem it is, and some who wanted to customize it and ruin it, as far as I was concerned.

None of the local people who had always said they wanted to buy it when Daddy died have shown any interest in doing so. Wishful thinking.

So, since we will be having a big Yard/Estate Sale next month some time, it seems like it is time to start really trying to sell the car. We still have not put it in the paper, because I just wasn't as ready to part with it as I thought I was. I finally took lots of pictures of it this week. I couldn't resist giving the trunk a parting caress as I came back in the house. It's almost like saying goodbye to Daddy all over again. I have been working the last couple of days on putting up a website about the car, so I am coming to terms with the fact that we really are going to sell it.

It was sad and fun at the same time for me to go back and re-read all of the posts I wrote about some of Daddy's cars, starting with his first automobile in 1914 up to this, his last one, and I put the link to this post in the sales page, so collectors and those who enjoy nostalgia could enjoy reading them, too.

9 Year Old Driver! Vintage Auto Memories Part I

First Driver's License - Vintage Auto Memories Part II

Life Before the Bottom Fell Out - Automobile Memories Part IV

Just Married - Automobile Memories Part V

Daddy's Idea of a Vacation

Burma Shave, Stuckeys & Hand Surfing Memories

The Year Daddy Hated to Drive to Chicago

1969 Chevrolet Caprice - His Last Automobile

Selling Daddy's Car

I am glad I decided to make the website, as I posted almost 60 photos, so I will always be able to revisit it any time I want to, for as long as I want to.

It may have a new owner sometime in the future, but it will always be "Daddy's Car."

Do You Know What This Is?????????????????

One of our readers has been trying to figure out what this unusual vintage item is.

I found your blog and noticed that it mentioned that if someone was looking for a 'particular vintage collectible' to contact you. I'm kind of working in reverse... I'm wondering if you would know what this item is...

Its total length is no more than 6 inches. I'm really at a loss, and would appreciate any help you can offer. Or if you can direct me to someone that could help, I would appreciate it. Thanks in advance!
Sheila

The first thing that popped into my mind was that this is part of a desk set from the quill pen era. They used fine sand in a container to pour on the paper, so the ink would dry without smearing.

The other thing that came to mind is some kind of unusual open salt, back when people didn't use salt shakers at the dinner table.

I did suggest that Shelia email Kovel's Komments, on the chance they would choose her object to identify for their free newsletter. If you know another place that might be able to help, please let us know.


OK, I put out my guesses.... now it's YOUR TURN.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS????

SANTA .... He's EVERYWHERE!!

We have always had a lot of fun finding unusual items at Estate Sales on our Friday Date Day, but this little Santa decoration caught my eye, and the more we looked at it, the more unusual it appeared. If you click on the picture, you will see that all of the dolls in Santa's stockings have sad faces! Doesn't that seem strange to you?

So, it's not surprising that it was a Santa collector who bought him from us on eBay. I struck up a conversation with Brian, and asked him if I could share some of the pictures of his collection that he sent to me. He plans to write a book about Santa collecting, and it looks like he has plenty to write about!

Tommee Tippee Memories

Sometimes we find old things at Estate Sales that just flood my thoughts with childhood memories. One such item we found not long ago was a Tommee Tippee set of an old food dish and child's drinking cup. They were definitely used a lot, and this cup does not have the sippy lid, but the old decals with the teddy bear were enough to send me into a nostalgic reverie. I used the weighted round bottom double handle cups with our own children, but this set is quite possibly from when I was a small child, and could very well have been like a set that I would have used.

I tried hunting down some history on the Westland Plastics Co. that made these way back when, but had no luck. Most of the weighted vintage cups that I could find on the Internet were assumed by the sellers to be from the 50's, but my immediate nostalgic reaction to this set would place it in the early 40's.

So, does this set look familiar to you? Can you help me place an age on them? I'd love to hear your stories about how old things like this can evoke powerful memories.

Reader Needs HELP Finding Mother's Carnival Glass Bowl

Carnival Glass collecting involves a lot of reading, research, and spending time studying examples of the original pieces, in order to tell the reproductions from the originals. With that said, we received this email recently from someone who was looking at our Dirty Butter Estates items on eBay, but I'm just not knowledgeable enough to be able to answer our reader, who is also named Rosemary. If you could help her out, I'm sure she would really appreciate any information or suggestions for resources she might use to find a picture for her mother to see.

In the late 1920's early 30's my mother won a carnival glass dish/bowl by tossing a coin in the dish. She had the dish for many years but it got broken. My sister and I have been looking for one for years. My mother said it was about 6-8 inches across and plain. She describes it something like a console bowl. She said it had lines underneath and rounded down at the top. I saw something on e-bay that might be it, but not sure. It is a salad bowl. Do you know of anything like this?

Rosemary

If you or a friend is knowledgeable in this area of collecting, I'd appreciate it if you would post a comment, or send this post to your friend.

Do You Remember Premiums??

Every once in a while when we find something unusual at an Estate Sale, we buy it, even though we don't have a clue what it might be worth, just for the education it can give us when we do the research.

This glass oven ware pan was just such a find last week, that I couldn't resist. What intrigued me was the big logo in the bottom with the cursive name of Mary Dunbar in it. I had never heard of that name before, but when I did the research on her, I found some very interesting information. I even found a forum where her grand daughter was chatting about what her grandmother had accomplished!

It seems that Mary Dunbar was the name given to the Jewel Tea Co.'s spokesperson in the 1920's. The lady who went by that company name was the head of the company's test kitchen, and wrote a series of cookbooks and a monthly newsletter. She is credited with the invention of the 7 minute icing recipe. There was even a Mary Dunbar seal of approval, much like the Good Housekeeping seal of today.

It seems that the Jewel Tea Co. put coupons in with their various spices and tea products, and those coupons could be redeemed for various household goods. The most well known of these was the Hall China Co. Autumn Leaf pattern china and related items. This pattern in highly collectible today. Our loaf pan was probably one of those premium items.

We have this Mary Dunbar pan listed on eBay now, if you're interested.

Premium items used to be so common. Banks gave you clocks and toasters for joining, and Service Stations gave out knives with fill-ups. I'm sure you can think of a lot more such give-aways. The customer was KING in those days. Now you're lucky if you get a pen with the company name on it, or a refrigerator magnet!!

Hmmmmmm .... something's changed over the years, hasn't it?? Now, it seems as if the mentality of most businesses and clerks is that they are doing us a favor by deigning to do business with us. I liked it better the way it used to be, thank you very much!!

1969 Chevrolet Caprice - His Last Automobile

As I've said before in other posts, my Daddy always dated everything in his life by what car he was driving at the time. The last car he had was his 1969 Caprice, which he always said he bought when our younger DD was born. LOL

He babied and pampered that car, wiping down the engine, checking the oil and water, and generally making sure it was in tip top shape before he drove it anywhere. It was always kept in a garage, and the only place there's any flaw at all on the finish is back where he put his hand on the trunk when he filled the gas tank. For some reason that part of the finish faded, so Daddy tried to even the paint out, but not successfully. He had put duct tape on the driver's door handle a long time ago, too, because of a tear. But other than that, the whole car looks like it hasn't been broken in yet, even though it has about 133,000 miles on it.

The old girl has been sitting patiently in the garage for a long time now. Daddy used to start it up every few days, even after I quit driving it, but then one of the brake cylinders leaked. After that, it's just been sitting.

We have several people who have expressed an interest in buying it from me, so I've called the local mechanic to go get it and get it back in good running condition. It's kind of sad to be thinking about getting rid of it, knowing how Daddy felt about his cars, but I don't have a desire to keep it, either.

The car is so old that Daddy didn't have a Title for it, so I called the county license office to see what I needed to do. The clerk said all I needed to do was make out a Bill of Sale for it. So that means I don't have to deal with the State DMV to get a Title for it, and I'm glad of that.

It should be interesting to see if any of those people who have ooohed and ahhhed over the car over the years, who said they would want to buy it, really will be interested. Of course, it will sell for a good bit, since it's so old and in such good shape. In fact, it will likely sell for considerably more than Daddy paid for it!

Why Do I Have this Thing for Aprons???

Some of the treasures I always look for when we go to Estate Sales are any really pretty or unusual aprons. While everyone else is busy with the furniture or china, I'm rummaging through kitchen drawers or stacks of linens in the back bedroom. I buy them all - the everyday aprons, home made preferably, the cute handkerchief aprons, fancy party aprons that never saw a kitchen stove, and the big coverall kind that often have stains on them.

So, what's the attraction? I think it's because I always associate aprons with my Grandmother and Mama. Both loved to cook, plus my grandmother dressed up every day. So she always wore the big coverall kind. I have trouble seeing her in my mind without an apron LOL. Just about the only time she didn't have one on was when she went somewhere.


Mama always used the half apron type, but one was always on the ready, hanging from the towel rack. I'm hoping, when the time comes, that I'm going to find some of Mama's stuck back somewhere, but I don't really expect to find any. Mama was not a keeper - she was a neat freak, so when she got older and didn't cook fancy any more, she probably used them as rags and got rid of them.

When they're all ironed up and laid out for picture taking to add to my descriptions on eBay, they make quite a display of domesticity, and they always carry me back to Grandmother's and Mama's kitchens, and big hugs that buried my face in their sun scented cotton aprons.

An Elephant Childhood Memory

It's really funny what odd little bits and pieces of the past linger with us over the years. One of my memories from my grandmother's home in Chicago is of a little china creamer. I can see it in my head as if I had used it just yesterday. It was a squat little pitcher, with a short trunk as a pouring spout and the tail became the handle. His bulging sides became the bowl of the creamer, and I remember that the details of his head were outlined in pastel pinks and blues.

It wouldn't do for Grandmother to pour milk into my glass from the milk bottle. No, she would put the milk in the little pitcher, and I would oh so happily pour the milk into my glass or on my cereal through that wonderful spout. I even remember just drinking straight from the elephant's trunk. Why it turned ordinary milk into such a treat, only a child could completely understand. But it was special to me, turning the mundane into magic.

Grandmother and Granddaddy moved from Chicago to Birmingham, where we lived, when I was 14. I was busy adjusting to High School, and, for the time being, relics of my childhood were not on my mind. So, there are several things from their Chicago home that were left behind that I wish now I had had the good sense to ask for. That little elephant would be at the top of my list.

I've looked at many little elephant pitchers at Estate Sales, hoping to one day find MY elephant, but so far I've been disappointed by each one. What made him different from others I've seen is hard to put into words, but I know I'll recognize this childhood friend of mine when I see him.

Mama's Lace Curtains - A Sunny Memory

When I think back over my childhood, one of the images I see is of Mama doing her yearly washing of all the lace curtains in our house. I don't remember if she washed them in the washing machine or in the bathtub, but it's the drying ritual that left such as indelible memory in my mind's eye.

This tedious chore had to be done in pretty weather on a Saturday. First, Daddy would haul the frames out of the garage for stretching the wet lace on. All around the outside wooden frame were hundreds and hundreds of little spikes, sticking up in a row. I remember helping Mama to put her curtains on these torture racks. I'd pull the bottom ones, while she pulled the top ones. Each outside loop of the lace was pulled until it fit over one of the spikes. On and on we tugged and stretched, until the whole curtain was attached to the frame. Left leaning against the clothesline in the sun, it didn't take long for the beautiful white curtains to dry.

The sun did its magic, so the pattern of the lace was perfectly symmetrical, with no need for any ironing. And they smelled great, too! If you've never hung clothes out to dry in the sun, you have no idea just how wonderful clothes can smell!!

In this day of wash and wear fabrics, it's hard to imagine anyone going to this much effort for curtains. And Mama wasn't a stay at home housekeeper, either. She had a full time job as long as I can remember. We did have a maid, who cooked, cleaned, and stayed with me until they got home from work, but these precious lace curtains were always something she took care of herself.

Maybe that's one of the reasons I'm drawn to look at any delicate lace that we find at Estate Sales. Sometimes we luck up on a beautiful piece that is not high priced, and they always sell quickly and with a nice price. I must not be the only one who associates fine lace, doilies, and cutwork with precious memories of days gone by.

Vintage Calendars for Decorating the Old Fashioned Way

There are so many ways to use vintage linen calendars to enhance the country look, shabby chic look, or coordinate with true antiques in your home. An eclectic mix of styles will be spiced up with just the right towel, too. Even modern decor can benefit from just the right choice of vintage calendar towels. Whether you use the towels in your kitchen, frame them, hang them on a dowel, or only use the decorative half of the towel, there are lots of ways to benefit from these artistic, but practical everyday items from long ago.

Have you found creative uses for vintage linen towels that I have not mentioned? Would you please share them with us, so we can all benefit from your ideas?

You can find some of our vintage calendar towels now for sale in our Dirty Butter Estates Collectibles Shoppe.