Pair of unique 19th century Imperial yellow cut glass Bohemian bonbonnieres that sold for $190,000 (hammer price). Artingstall & Hind Auctioneers BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – Artingstall & Hind Auctioneers ended the 2014 calendar year with an outstanding and impressive sale on Dec. 7.
One of Great Britain’s oldest auction firms, established in Manchester, England in 1874 opened a showroom in Beverly Hills, Calif., in 2010. In less than half a decade the company became one of the fastest growing auction houses in Los Angeles. Artingstall specializes in rare Imperial and Export Chinese ceramics and art, fine Japanese works of art and European decorative arts and antiques from the 16th to 20th Century.
The Dec. 7 auction drew international attention for its large array of specialty fine arts and antiques, with bidders participating from Europe, the Middle East and Asia. LiveAuctioneers.com provided Internet live bidding.
The predominant piece bringing vast amounts of attention was Lot 299, a pair of unique 19th century imperial yellow cut glass Bohemian bonbonnieres. The opaline glass, originally made for Persian and Turkish markets, was a truly distinguished feature. Its vibrant yellow color and enamel flowers painted on the lid, body and tray were exquisite. The lids were surmounted with French cast bronze clusters of grapes. It was a beautiful piece that deserved the soaring bids from across the globe. With aggressive phone bidders and online bidders the item sold at $190,000 hammer price.
Several other featured items brought a lot of attention and stellar prices. One was Lot 337, a bronze archaic–style gu vessel decorated with raised geometric patterns and marks on the interior. It sold for $110,000 hammer price.
In addition, Lot 1 was greatly admired by all. The antique bronze hexagonal handmade desk clock. The intricate details of the mechanics were visible through glass panels on each side of the body with the bottom opening up to show the magnificent cast bronze scrollwork. It sold for $5,500 hammer price.
This has been a remarkable year for Artingstall & Hind Auctioneers, especially given the expansion to furniture, jewelry and decorative arts. They are currently prepping for an even more successful year in 2015. To consign your fine arts and antiques with Artingstall & Hind, contact info@artingstall.com or call 310-424-5288.
Pair of unique 19th century Imperial yellow cut glass Bohemian bonbonnieres that sold for $190,000 (hammer price). Artingstall & Hind AuctioneersBronze archaic–style gu vessel decorated with raised geometric patterns and marks on the interior. Price realized (excluding buyer’s premium): $110,000. Artingstall & Hind AuctioneersHandmade bronze desk clock. Price realized (excluding buyer’s premium): $5. Artingstall & Hind Auctioneers
Pair of Meissen porcelain urns, each with a pair of snake-form handles. Sold for $7,800. Capo Auction image NEW YORK – New York’s Capo Auction Fine Art and Antiques recently conducted their holiday auction on Dec. 13 with numerous highlights throughout the sale in furniture, decorative items, fine art and jewelry. Getting much presale attention in the furniture arena, was a Chippendale-style mahogany chest of drawers.
The crowded auction house was packed with their regular customers, dealers and collectors from around New York and in town for the holidays, while much of the bidding came online and on the phones. LiveAuctioneers.com facilitated Internet live bidding.
The Chippendale-style chest, with a serpentine-fronted top over four drawers, 33 inches high, 47 inches wide and 24 inches deep, sold for $10,800, while a Continental marquetry bombe commode with a serpentine-fronted top over three drawers and a decoration of figures on horseback, sold for $4,200. It measured 34 inches high, 33 inches wide and 15 inches deep.
In other areas, a beautiful pair of Meissen porcelain urns, each with a pair of snake-form handles and classical scene decoration on a cobalt ground, height 15 1/2 inches, sold for $7,800, and an unusual Mughal filigree pendant necklace composed of eight pendants set with flat cut diamonds, emeralds, tourmaline, sapphires and rubies on a 23K gold chain, 68.70 grams, sold for $6,000.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.
Pair of Meissen porcelain urns, each with a pair of snake-form handles. Sold for $7,800. Capo Auction imageChippendale-style mahogany chest of drawers, with a serpentine-fronted top over four drawers. Sold for $10,800. Capo Auction imageContinental marquetry bombe commode, with a serpentine-fronted top over three drawers. Sold for $4,200. Capo Auction imageMughal filigree pendant necklace composed of eight pendants set with flat cut diamonds, emeralds, tourmaline, sapphires and rubies. Sold for $6,000. Capo Auction image
Russ Kodner auctions off the Frederick Arthur Bridgman painting titled ‘Reception of an Ambassador’ for $160,000. Kodner Galleries image
DANIA, Fla. – Kodner Galleries sold a Frederick Arthur Bridgman (American, 1847-1928) oil on canvas painting titled Reception of an Ambassador (Palace of Constantine) for $160,000, ending the 2014 auction year with two-day event yielding sales of $1.2 million. The recently rediscovered circa 1880 Bridgman work, probably first purchased in 1902, had only two previous owners, both in South Florida. The fine orientalist work was in exceptional original condition and garnered attention from dealers and collectors from California, New York, London, Paris and South Florida. In the end it was hammered down to an enthusiastic European phone bidder.
Internet live bidding was provided by LiveAuctioneers.com.
The first of the year-end two day auction event was held Dec. 10 and in addition to the Bridgman featured a huge and varied collection of 19th-20th century Continental painted porcelain plaques, plates and furniture and included fine examples of KPM, Royal Vienna, Sevres, Doulton-Lambeth and Meissen. The Florida collection was consigned to Kodner Galleries following two years of negotiation. The collection, possibly the largest of its kind still in private hands was eagerly anticipated by Kodner Galleries’ regulars and nearly 1,000 new internet, phone and absentee bidders worldwide. Bidders scooped up nearly 90 percent of the auction lots offered.
The numerous porcelain highlights include Lot 61, a fine late 19th century French gilt bronze mounted onyx pedestal guéridon, the top mounted with Sevres porcelain portrait plaques depicting Louis XV and ladies of his court, selling for $17,700; Lot 67, circa 1875 KPM painted porcelain plaque, “Christ u. der reiche Fungling,” at $7,670; Lot 102, a fine late 19th century Continental carved and giltwood cabinet on stand mounted with 27 Vienna enamel plaques and Meissen porcelain, $11,800; Lot 133, a circa 1900 English Doulton-Lambeth painted porcelain plaque Picking Flowers, $7,670; Lots 63 and 64, two 19th-20th century Royal Vienna painted porcelain chargers Urtheil de Paris (Judgment of Paris) and Grazien U. Schlaftender Amor bringing a total of $16,520; and Lot 105, a late 19th century German KPM painted porcelain plaque Hercules and Admirers for $5,900. The porcelain collection brought in excess of $200,000.
Additional standout lots of the Dec. 10 auction included Lot 113, Anthony Redmile, (British, 20th century) monumental white metal mounted tortoise shell, fetching $10,030; Lot 110, a circa 1880s Karl Springer, (American, 1931-1981) chromed steel bench selling for $4,838; and Lot 96a, George Baxter, (British, 1804-1867) circa 1865 oil on canvas Two Sisters bringing $14,750.
Fine jewelry offerings included Lot 81a, an Art Deco diamond and platinum bracelet of approximately 12.0 carats of round, brilliant-cut diamonds bringing $8,850, and Lot 81f, a David Webb cabochon sapphire, ruby, emerald and diamond, 18K gold and platinum ring at $7,080.
The second of the two-day end of year auction was held Dec. 17 and was billed as a Holiday Jewelry and Gift sale. This sale has become a much anticipated event on the Kodner Galleries’ auction calendar and was preceded by a champagne preview party. This year’s sale included gold coins, silver bars, exceptional estate jewelry, Judith Leiber and Louis Vuitton purses, Cartier pens and watches, and much more. Fine offerings included Lot 51, a Patek Philippe Aquanaut stainless steel watch bringing $12,980; Lot 27, a fine quality Italian Bulgari-style handmade heavy 18K yellow gold, diamond, tourmaline and peridot necklace and ear clip suite commanding $24,780; and Lot 150a, a vintage 77.60 carat double cabochon sapphire and diamond ring selling for $23,600. Highlighting this sale was Lot 54, an EGL certified 6.05-carat fancy intense yellow diamond and platinum ring selling for $59,000.
The December two-day event ended a very upbeat 2014 for Kodner Galleries. The auction gallery founded in 1906 is optimistic about 2015 with 20 auctions currently scheduled starting Jan. 14 and running three weeks apart.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.
Russ Kodner auctions off the Frederick Arthur Bridgman painting titled ‘Reception of an Ambassador’ for $160,000. Kodner Galleries imagePatek Philippe Aquanaut stainless steel watch. Price realized: $12,980. Kodner Galleries image.Platinum ring with fancy intense yellow diamond, 6.05 carats. Price realized: $59,000. Kodner Galleries image.Late 19th century French gilt bronze mounted onyx pedestal guéridon, the top mounted with Sevres porcelain portrait plaques depicting Louis XV and ladies of his court. Price realized: $17,700. Kodner Galleries image.Circa 1875 KPM painted porcelain plaque, ‘Christ u. der reiche Fungling.’ Price realized: $7,670. Kodner Galleries image.Circa 1900 English Doulton-Lambeth painted porcelain plaque, ‘Picking Flowers.’ Price realized: $7,670. Kodner Galleries image.Lots 63 and 64, two 19th-20th century Royal Vienna porcelain chargers, ‘Urtheil de Paris’ (Judgment of Paris) and ‘Grazien U. Schlaftender Amor,’ totaled $16,520. Kodner Galleries image.
A top lot was a bronze titled the ‘Birth of Venus’ which realized of $24,780. The unusual and striking work depicted a Daum glass female deity emerging from a deconstructed, four-piece bronze shell of her likeness. Michaan’s image ALAMEDA, Calif. – Michaan’s auction event Dec. 8, encompassing fine art, furnishings, decorative arts and jewelry, held some of the most outstanding property seen on their auction room floor all year. LiveAuctioneers.com provided Internet live bidding.
A top lot from the sale was seen in an astonishing bronze titled the Birth of Venus (lot 3284, est. $5,000-$7,000). The unusual and striking work depicted a Daum glass female deity emerging from a deconstructed, four-piece bronze shell of her likeness. A San Francisco collector, who attended the auction live, was the high bidder paying $24,780, well over three times the high estimate.
Elizabeth Dalton, Michaan’s department specialist, said, “Of the 12 Daum Nancy lots in the fine auction, this piece was undoubtedly the pinnacle of the collection. It is both timeless and modern in its artistic value; a wonderful piece that I was honored to have in my portion of the sale.”
Additional successes from the furnishing and decorative arts category were an Aaron Willard Federal mahogany tall case clock (lot 3124, est. $20,000-$30,000, sold for $23,600), a Russian icon of Saint George and the Dragon (lot 3102, $1,000-$1,500, sold for $14,160) and a Evgeni Alexandrovich Lanceray bronze group of oxen pulling a cart (lot 3157, $4,000-$6,000, realized $10,030).
Jewelry lots sparkled at auction, with a top seller evidenced in a circa 1940s House of Boucheron ruby and gold brick link bracelet (lot 3340, $2,500-5,000). Forty-two square cut rubies of a total weight of approximately 10 carats were cleverly mounted into the 18K gold piece, appearing as three-dimensional steps laying fluidly upon the wrist. A New York-based bidder battled it out for the bracelet, eventually securing it for $23,600. Rounding out jewelry’s top three lots were a diamond and platinum wedding ring set (lot 3383, $13,000-$18,000, sold for $21,240) and an Art Deco diamond and sapphire ring from a French aristocratic estate (lot 3360, $6,000-$9,000, sold for $10,030).
Honorable mentions were seen in highly anticipated fine art lots as well. Exceeding high estimates were a considerable oil painting by Mel Ramos titled Greek Architecture (lot 3059, $10,000-$12,000, sold for $15,340) and collectible woodblock prints by Gustave Baumann (lot 3028, $8,000-$10,000, sold for $12,980 and lot 3029, $6,000-$9,000, sold for $10,620).
For general information please call Michaan’s Auctions at 510-740-0220 ext. 0 or e-mail info@michaans.com. Michaan’s Auctions is located at 2751 Todd St., Alameda, CA 94501.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.
A top lot was a bronze titled the ‘Birth of Venus’ which realized of $24,780. The unusual and striking work depicted a Daum glass female deity emerging from a deconstructed, four-piece bronze shell of her likeness. Michaan’s imageEstimated at $13,000-18,000, this diamond and platinum wedding ring set sold for $21,240. Michaan’s imageThis woodblock print by Gustave Baumann sold for $12,980. Michaan’s image
Rare 19th-century Tibetan filigreed votive plaque set with hundreds of semiprecious cabochon stones on gilt copper base. Overall 33¾ x 28 inches. Est. $50,000-$70,000. AGOPB image WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – South Florida’s winter antiques and auction season is known as a time of year when all eyes in the trade focus on Auction Gallery of the Palm Beaches (AGOPB) and its first auction event of the year. To welcome 2015, AGOPB will host a Monday, Jan. 12, evening sale comprising 350 lots of exquisite antiques, decorative art and paintings from some of the region’s most elegant estates.
Internet live bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com.
The auction’s centerpiece is the Estate of Robert W. Gottfried. Gottfried was a prominent Palm Beach real estate developer and home builder, who co-founded Martha A. Gottfried Inc., the premier luxury real estate firm on the island. The famed Gottfried mansion on Hi Mount Road in Palm Beach was magnificently appointed with antiques in the French and Italian taste, many of large scale.
Also featured in the auction are a superb collection of 18th/19th-century Italian and French furniture and antiques acquired over many years by J. Abbott of Ibis Isle, Palm Beach; and a small collection of very fine Faberge items from a Russian-born woman who lives in Delray Beach, Fla. Some of the Faberge in the latter collection was held privately for 50 years and therefore would be entirely new to the current marketplace. European bronzes and clocks from the Estate of Irving Karlbach, Boynton Beach, Fla, and a fine collection of Chinese and Tibetan jades and objets d’art combine to add a crowning note of excellence to the auction’s 350-lot selection.
Lot 265, a rare, 19th-century Tibetan jeweled votive plaque, is the largest and most accomplished work of Asian art in the Jan. 12 auction. Consigned locally by a gentleman whose family has retained the plaque for more than half a century, the precious religious object displays exquisite filigree work and a design set with hundreds of semiprecious stones (coral, turquoise, lapis) enhancing images of Vishnu and Immortals with demons and dragons. The plaque is mounted in a heavy, chased copper support frame.
“The workmanship on this piece is simply amazing,” said Brian Kogan, president of AGOPB. “This kind of Tibetan artwork is exceedingly rare, and similar examples are difficult to locate, either in museums or collections.” It is estimated at $40,000-$60,000. Another Asian artwork of particularly fine quality is Lot 263, a carved white jade boulder depicting the goddess Guanyin seated inside a shrine. Estimate: $30,000-$40,000.
The aforementioned collection of rare and important Faberge jewelry and other objets de vertu was brought to the United States in the 1970s, when the consignor emigrated from her native Russia. The Faberge pieces include two pieces by workmaster Henrik Wigstrom (1908-1917): Lot 210, a gold and guilloche enamel lozenge brooch centered with a round diamond point estimated at $15,000-$20,000; and Lot 126, a unique tie pin commemorating 300 years of Russian Imperialism. The pin bears the double-eagle crest and the dates 1619-1919 and is estimated at $10,000-$15,000. Lot 211, a Faberge silver and enamel Icon of the Mother and Child, St. Petersburg, dated 1895, by workmaster Anders Michelsson, is entered with an estimate of $20,000-$30,000.
Lot 209 consists of a pair of extremely attractive gold, diamond and guilloche blue enamel cufflinks, 1908-1917, by workmaster Anton Kuzmichev. “While not a Faberge design, the quality and execution are simply exceptional. These cufflinks are going to catch the eyes of jewelry connoisseurs,” Kogan predicted.
The Estate of Robert Gottfried includes a broad selection of antiques and furnishings from the family’s Hi Mount Road mansion, including English, Italian, French, and large-scale custom furniture, bronzes, marble statuary, pedestals, carpets, lamps and paintings.
“Those who have had the great privilege of visiting the Gottfried mansion may recall being greeted by (Lot 45) a pair of 20th-century blackamoors on rockery bases, each holding a seven-light candelabrum. Each figure stands 78 inches high, and together they are estimated at $1,500-$2,000,” said Kogan.
The sale includes several particularly fascinating clocks, notably Lot 206, a French industrial lighthouse clock. Designed by Guilmet, a well-known maker of mystery clocks, the circa 1885 timekeeper stands 25½ inches high has has a movement stamped “GLT, Paris” and “Vincenti.” It has a rare oscillating vertical torsion pendulum and a case of silver and gilt metal “brickwork.” It is expected to reach $10,000-$15,000 at auction.
Lot 169 is a very large Tiffany & Co. white Carrera marble and ormolu lyre clock, standing 26½ inches high, with a crystal paste stone chapter ring. Estimate: $8,000-$10,000. Lot 83 is a copy of a Willard lighthouse clock, probably from the early 20th century, that was made as a presentation piece for the Sandy Hook Lighthouse in New Jersey. The clock has been owned by the consignor’s father since the 1930s and is estimated at $3,000-$5,000.
The auction will include a great variety of paintings and prints well-recognized and widely collected artists such as Emile Vernon, Le Pho, Salvador Dali, Andre Gisson, Marcel Dyf, Edmund Adler, Avinash Chandra, Filippo Indoni, Gustave Courtois, Francisco Zuniga, Paul Pascal and Louis Fabien. The list continues with Cherry J. Huldah, Norman Rockwell, Pascal Leroy, Eduardo Morales, Sadegh Tabrizi, Alfred Munnings, Henry Stull, Emil Adam, William Paskell, George Howell Gay, Robert Phillip, Bernard Karfiol and Johann Ridinger.
Top paintings include Lot 222, Emile Vernon’s (French, 1872-1919) signed oil-on-canvas titled Lady Tennis Players, est. $12,000-$18,000; and Le Pho’s (Vietnamese, 1907-2001) signed oil-on-canvas with calligraphy titled Girl with Vase of Flowers, est. $20,000-$30,000.
Auction Gallery of the Palm Beaches’ Monday, Jan. 12, Major Winter Estates Auction will be held at the company’s 7,000-square-foot Mediterranean-style gallery located in the historic Gatsby Building, 1609 S. Dixie Hwy., #5, West Palm Beach, FL 33401, one-half block from the Norton Museum of Art. Start time: 6 p.m. Eastern, with a live audio/video stream available to view online. Preview 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday Jan. 8, 9 and 10; as well as 10 to 6 p.m. on auction day. The gallery is closed on Sundays.
For information on any item in the auction, call 561-805-7115 or email company partners Leslie Baker at leslie@agopb.com or Brian Kogan at brian@agopb.com.
View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.
Rare 19th-century Tibetan filigreed votive plaque set with hundreds of semiprecious cabochon stones on gilt copper base. Overall 33¾ x 28 inches. Est. $50,000-$70,000. AGOPB imageFaberge silver and enamel icon, St. Petersburg, 7 x 5¾ inches, dated 1895. Workmaster: Anders Michelsson. Assayer: Aleksandr Sever. Est. $20,000-$30,000. AGOPB imageRussian gold, diamond and guilloche blue enamel cufflinks, 1908-1917, .56 standard. Maker: Anton Kuzmichev. Est. $15,000-$20,000. AGOPB imageFaberge gold, diamond and guilloche enamel tie pin overlaid with Imperial Eagle with diamond, 1908-1917, .56 standard. Workmaster: Henrik Wigstrom. Bears 1613-1913 dates to represent 300th anniversary of Russian Imperial rule. Est. $10,000-$15,000. AGOPB imageCirca-1885 French industrial lighthouse clock with sterling silver weathervane, oscillating pendulum designed by Guilmet, movement stamped ‘GLT Paris’ and ‘Vincenti,’ 25¼ inches high. Est. $10,000-$15,000. AGOPB imageCarved white jade boulder depicting the goddess Guanyin seated inside a shrine on double lotus base, 11½ inches high. Est. $30,000-$40,000. AGOPB imageEmile Vernon (1872-1919), ‘Lady Tennis Players,’ oil on canvas, signed, 35¾ x 26 inches. Est. $12,000-$18,000. AGOPB imageLe Pho (Vietnamese, 1907-2001), ‘Girl with Vase of Flowers,” oil on canvas, signed, 36 x 28 inches. Est. $20,000-$30,000. AGOPB imagePair of polychrome blackamoors, each 78 inches high with a raised arm supporting a seven-light candelabrum. Est. for the pair $1,500-$2,000. Ex Estate of Robert Gottfried, Palm Beach, Florida. AGOPB image
‘Banana Grove’ flowstone in the Oregon Caves National Monument. Image by Roger Brandt, National Park Service, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) – You won’t see a different cave or a new chateau at the Oregon Caves National Monument. But some are calling the expansion of the landmark, with legislation attached to a defense spending bill signed recently by President Obama, a monumental change.
The monument will be nearly 10 times its original 488-acre size, with 4,000 acres added. It will include the entire watershed above the caves, where scenic Bigelow Lakes lies below Mount Elijah – named after Elijah Davidson, who discovered the cave in 1874.
Roger Brandt, historian and Illinois Valley tourism promoter, said the larger square on the map will bring more tourists.
“A lot of people completely miss this monument,” Brandt said. “You look at pink spots on the Oregon map that show where parks are, and you don’t see it.
“There are bigger reasons for doing this than just getting a bigger spot on the map, but I think that’s going to be what gets more attention.”
Lee Webb, former biologist for the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, used to lead evening trips in the shadow of Mount Elijah looking for long-eared owls. It pleases him to see that area part of the monument now.
“Bigelow Lakes is one of my favorite spots on the forest,” Webb said. “The National Park Service wanted to control the drainage, and that makes sense. Geographic boundaries make sense.”
Cattle are no longer grazing in the drainage because a buyout of a grazing right was negotiated, which should enhance the hike.
“Bigelow Lakes is one of the best loop trails in the valley,” added Brandt.
“With a monument like this, you get this inferred guarantee for a high-quality experience. If you go around the world, just about every country has national parks now, and that’s what people travel to see.”
“I think we’ll see increased visitation,” said Vicki Snitzler, superintendent at Oregon Caves since 2008. “There are a lot of folks out there interested whenever parks get new designations or expansions.”
Snitzler said now that the National Park Service has taken over management from the U.S. Forest Service of the land added to the monument, it has 14 to 16 more miles of trails and 25 more miles of roads to maintain.
“The legislation didn’t come with any new money or any new employees, so we’ll be using what we currently have in our budget to try to make it stretch,” Snitzler said.
One of the first tasks is dealing with hazard trees at a former Forest Service campground, now part of the park, that has been closed for two years. Snitzler said inclusion of the creek that flows through the cave – known as the River Styx – as the first underground Wild and Scenic river is another honor bestowed on the monument, along with the 80-year-old Chateau being named to the prestigious Historic Hotels of America program in 2014. It was already a National Historic Landmark.
Greg Walter, another Illinois Valley historian and businessman, was thankful to U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio for pushing the legislation through. It’s also timely, with the centennial of the National Park Service coming in 2016.
Brandt said the expansion is another tourist victory, joining the ever-growing visitor highlights in the valley, which include the Illinois Valley Smokejumper Base and Museum at the airport and the Forks State Park that is undergoing improvements.
“In my opinion, it’s not all about just the Illinois Valley,” he said. “It’s about Josephine County and southwest Oregon. This will increase the flow of traffic into the area.”
Expansion of the monument was previously proposed by the National Park Service in 1939, 1949 and 2000.
“It seemed like the planets aligned and it finally happened,” Snitzler said.
Copyright 2014 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-12-27-14 1952GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
‘Banana Grove’ flowstone in the Oregon Caves National Monument. Image by Roger Brandt, National Park Service, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.Visitors exploring the Oregon Caves in the 1940s. National Park Service photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.The Oregon Caves Chateau at Oregon Caves National Monument. Image by Jess Stryker. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.
Former Seaboard Coast Line Railroad class M-6 caboose on display at the Mulberry Phosphate Museum in Mulberry, Fla. Image by Harvey Henkelmann, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. ST. CHARLES, Mich. (AP) – Nearly 30 years ago, a James Township family made an unusual purchase: a full-sized train caboose.
Today, after extensive renovation, the caboose has been sold and moved to the St. Charles Area Museum for public display.
Carol Bray purchased the caboose in 1986 after a suggestion by her father, Ralph Garlick, who used to work at Railway Express delivering mail.
Bray told The Saginaw News that she went to Flint, Mich., to check out the caboose a couple times before purchasing it, bringing Garlick along once to inspect it, who said it was a good deal because of the potbellied stove inside it.
Garlick never got a chance to see it in Bray’s backyard, as he passed away before the caboose was moved to their home.
Bray continued to renovate the caboose, sandblasting and staining it to look like its original condition when it was built in 1941.
The renovations were finished in either 2001 or 2002, and Bray said she would use it at Christmastime and light it up with decorations.
Bray said she was approached by Jim Palmer, owner of the St. Charles Area Museum, about two years ago to see if she was interested in selling it.
“I had no (plans) of selling it until … Joe came knocking at the door,” she said.
Palmer said he casually mentioned to a friend he was thinking about buying a caboose, when he was told that Bray owned one.
What decided that she was going to sell the caboose, Bray said, was that St. Charles was going to keep it in its original condition and make it something people can come and learn about its history.
“My fear was always having it made into a popcorn stand or an ice cream (stand) or something like that,” she said.
“My intention of restoring the caboose was always to keep it in its original condition. So it could be… appreciated by the younger generations.”
The caboose was lifted off its wheels and put on the flatbed of a semi-truck, while the wheels were moved separately and placed on the train tracks at the museum for the caboose to be placed.
Palmer said all the money used to purchase the caboose was raised through grants and donations, including a $10,000 donation from the estate of Josie Manzoni, who died earlier this year, which helped get them to the $25,000 needed to purchase the caboose.
“We’re looking to show people what it was,” he said. “It’s going to be well taken care of.
“For what the trains were back in the ’40s … they were an important entity at one time.”
Copyright 2014 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-12-29-14 0911GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Former Seaboard Coast Line Railroad class M-6 caboose on display at the Mulberry Phosphate Museum in Mulberry, Fla. Image by Harvey Henkelmann, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
The exterior of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. Image by Winonave. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will celebrate 10 years in 2015 with activities and events.
The celebration falls during the year that also marks the 150th anniversaries of Lincoln’s assassination and the Civil War’s end.
The museum’s major exhibit will be “Undying Words: Lincoln 1858-1865.” With the Chicago History Museum, it explores Lincoln’s changing views through five key speeches with unique artifacts.
The museum will become digitally connected. Visitors will be able to see digital content on their mobile devices during tours.
In the spring, “The Battle Hymn Story” will premier in the theater explaining the origins of July Ward Howe’s singular anthem, The Battle Hymn of the Republic.
There will be a special summer “under the stars” event outdoors in Union Square Park.
Copyright 2014 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-12-29-14 1309GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
The exterior of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. Image by Winonave. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.
