Jim Yeager to head Morphy's Early American Toy division

Jim Yeager, newly appointed head of Morphy Auctions’ Early American Tin & Cast-Iron Toys & Banks division.

DENVER, Pa. – Dan Morphy, CEO of Morphy Auctions, has announced the appointment of veteran antique toy collector and dealer Jim Yeager to Morphy’s team of expert specialists. Yeager, whose business is based outside Kansas City, Mo., will head the south-central Pennsylvania auction company’s Early American Tin & Cast-Iron Toys & Banks division. His duties will include grading and cataloging 19th-century toys and banks for future Morphy sales.

Yeager is originally from St. Louis and earned a B.S. in Commercial Interior Design at the University of Missouri. Professionally, he put his design skills to work by creating stylish and functional commercial office spaces.

Yeager recalls he was first attracted to antique toys around 1980.

“Back then, some antiques shows were held in shopping malls, with dealers’ tables set up on the concourse in front of store windows. I was at a mall where a show was taking place and spotted some toys on a dealer’s table. I thought they might work well as interior design elements, so I bought one,” Yeager said.

Not long afterward, Yeager heard about the Chicago Toy Show and decided to attend.

“That opened a whole new world of buying to me,” he said. “Like so many others, I started as a collector and attended the show with that mindset, but I also brought along some toys to put out on a table to earn the money to buy more toys. That’s how many collectors become dealers. You buy 10 toys, keep the one you really want and sell the other nine. That’s how it started for me.”

Over the past three decades, Yeager has developed a particular expertise in 19th-century American mechanical and still banks, as well as early toys, including horse-drawn cast-iron and tin examples. He is a regular vendor at all of the top antique toy shows and several general antique shows where toys can be found, such as the Bedford Pickers show during New Hampshire Antiques Week. Additionally, he has represented many dozens of private collectors at auction.

“As an agent for a client, I inspect the toys that interest them, and if they pass the originality and condition test, I bid on them at auction. My job is to protect the buyer,” Yeager said.

Commenting on Yeager’s appointment, Dan Morphy said, “I have known Jim for over 15 years, and he’s one of the most respected dealer/collectors in his field. We are very fortunate that Jim has agreed to join our team. He brings a wealth of knowledge and connections to Morphy’s, and we’re all looking forward to working with him.”

To contact Jim Yeager, call 717-335-3435 or email info@morphyauctions.com.

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid online in Morphy’s Sept. 6-7 Toy & Sports Memorabilia Auction, featuring the Enzo Pertoldi robot and space toy collection, at:

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/catalog/43747_morphy-auctions-fri-sept-6th-2013-auction/page1

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/catalog/43749_morphy-auctions-sat-sept-7th-2013-auction/page1

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