SHIPSHEWANA, Ind. — A trove of highly coveted salesman samples and a collection of vintage Studebaker wagon memorabilia are featured items at Chupp Auctions as part of its two-day Antique Auction Sale on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13. The catalogs are now available for review and bidding at LiveAuctioneers.
Salesman samples were highly accurate and often fully functional miniatures of products too large to transport to a client’s location. The salesman could convincingly demonstrate a product’s functionality and build quality using the scale model, making them a highly effective sales tool. Today they are prized for their rarity and ingenuity.
Chupp’s consignor clearly had an affection for agrarian salesman samples. Located in Auburn, Indiana, this Monitor Mfg. Co. windmill with original transportation case is all original and looks virtually new. It is estimated at only $100-$200, but at the time of writing has reached $5,500 in bids.
Lima Mfg. Co. of Lima, Indiana, created this 19in-tall windmill sample for its salesmen on the road. Described as near mint, it has already been bid to $600 against a $100-$200 estimate and will certainly go higher.
This Adriance Platt & Co. (Poughkeepsie, New York) horse-drawn sickle sample comes with its original case that has a metal plate identifying it as model no. 213. Fully detailed and functional, bidding has already reached $2,000.
The Studebaker collection is equally impressive. Studebaker is best remembered for its automobiles and trucks, particularly the later Raymond Loewy-styled line of the 1950s and early 1960s with vehicles such as the Avanti, the Golden Hawk, and the Lark. But the South Bend, Indiana-based manufacturer dates to the late 1800s, when it was a pioneer in mass-manufacturing wagons for commercial, industrial, and agricultural use.
The review begins with a full-size Studebaker wooden box wagon made for J. W. Skinner of Goshen, Indiana. It was discovered buried under old hay in a barn, which served to protect it from dry rot and vermin damage. Outfitted with a Studebaker seat, the wagon has already reached $1,000 in bids.
Goats can pull wagons, and Studebaker made a model just for this purpose. All original, with only one spoke missing on one wheel, this Studebaker Junior goat wagon comes complete with seat, shafts, and a pull handle. It currently rests at $550 in bids.
Final highlights include three examples of Studebaker wagon advertising signs. The Sun Always Shines On the Studebaker is a framed lithograph, currently at $700. The Studebaker Is Sold Here is a circular 14in diameter tin-lithographed two-sided sign with one rough presentation side. It has made it to $400 in bids so far. And the 20th Century Studebaker Wagons sign is made from embossed lithographed tin, and currently bid to $800.
