Catalog (460)

Offered are two, circa 1930 era golf clubs, each sporting complete, original, leather grips and hickory shafts, all in good condition.

The first club has the following stamped on the back in an oval: "Wright & Ditson SPECIAL", plus "HAMMER FORGED" and the cleek mark image. A worn "MASHIE NIBLICK" stamp is noted on the sole. The face has a dot style stamping, and the shaft has "WRIGHT & DITSON" stamped near the grip. The shaft has an old repair and a bend. Overall, a nice club with mild wear to the metal appropriate for its age.

The second club is a handsome 3 iron Spalding Kro-Flite model sporting a lined face with a fancy circular design in the sweet spot. The #3 is stamped on the sole. The back has the following stamping: "Professional Golf Assoc. - Custom Made KRO-FLITE" and a crow cleek mark. The condition is very good noting a slight bend towards the handle and a wonderful patina.

In 1892, A. G. Spalding & Bros, acquired the Wright & Ditson Company to enhance their position in the club making industry. Wright & Ditson company was founded in 1871, and the name continued to be used by Spalding on both golf clubs & balls into the 1940's.

Offered is a very nice, vintage, drug store, BROMO SELTZER Dispenser with a patent date of 1930.

This popular and very recognizable, pharmacy collectible is constructed of a cobalt blue glass base with an aluminum stand that sports an old bottle of Bromo Seltzer retaining a label dating to 1987. The stand measures just over 15 inches high including the bottle.

The condition is commensurate with a used pharmacy device. The base shows wear with various scratches, and the metal is tarnished. The dispenser mechanism rotates and functions properly. The piece was in storage for many years and retains its original, "as-found" patina. A very nice find!

Some history:
The Bromo Seltzer product takes its name from a component of the original formula, sodium bromide. Bromides are a class of tranquilizers that were withdrawn from the U.S. market in 1975 due to their toxicity. Their sedative effect probably accounted for Bromo-Seltzer's vast popularity back in the day as THE go-to remedy for hangovers!

This delightful grouping of 3 black Aunt Jemima composition dolls from the 1930s enjoyed an interesting, more recent life as advertising display pieces in an old Vermont Country store!

The 3 dolls were grouped together in a creative display that supported the sale of Aunt Jemima Pancake products! Their costumes are all identical and were hand-stitched and made especially for the planned Aunt Jemima display.

Each of the dolls remain intact inside an encasement of glue and paper wrapping and are attached to home-made, plaster-of-Paris-based, rectangular platforms. The platforms were created in 1958 as is written on the bottom of each base, and the dolls remained in place until the store closed in the early 1980s.

The large doll is 11 inches tall and evidences age-crackling to her composition face and hands; her right hand is actually missing a small piece of composition (see photo). Black hair peeks out from inside her checkered head scarf framing her sweet face!

The doll on the left side is the shortest, measuring 5 3/4 inches high. She is in fine condition and her eyes are placed in an interesting sideward glance.

The doll on the right measures 6 1/4 inches tall. Her composition is in fine condition with the exception to some small loss at the very top of her head (see photo).

Certainly a very visually appealing trio, sold all together as a group of three!

Measuring 2.75 inches high x 2.75 inches in diameter, this very sweet, child's, Copper Lustre mug or cup was produced in 19th century England.

Beautiful "Copper Lustre" paint accents a central yellow band with copper colored, feather detailing. Interior rim is painted in a pink lustre band.

Condition is quite fine with no damage or repair. Some expected light wear from actual use to painted rim and base and a teeny firing imperfection on the handle that is not readily evident to the eye.

A darling piece to add to one's collection!

Offered is a RARE, UNCUT, C1917, pair of the adult members of the Aunt Jemima Rag Doll Family, Aunt Jemima and Uncle Mose. (Uncle Mose is Aunt Jemima's Husband, and he is labeled Uncle Mose on his upper back).

These dolls were conceptualized as advertising pieces and were only obtainable from the Aunt Jemima Mills of St. Joseph, Missouri, in return of 24 cents in stamps along with 4 box tops from select Aunt Jemima products for the full set which also included children, Little Diana and Wade Davis, OR for JUST ONE DOLL, 1 box top and 6 cents in stamps! Dolls were then shipped promptly, postpaid upon receipt!

The original purchaser of these uncut dolls, Mrs O. W. Lewis of Ethel, Missouri, clearly only ordered the Aunt Jemima and Uncle Mose dolls, as these dolls remained within the family, untouched in the original mailing envelope, until their recent discovery by the purchaser's descendants.

It is quite unusual to find uncut versions of these dolls -along with the original mailing envelope which typically is quickly tossed away- as more commonly, the dolls are found by chance as "singletons" here and there-- already cut, sewn, stuffed and played with as opposed to the pristine, uncut versions offered here.

The pair is in quite wonderful condition given their 100+ years of age and are suitable for framing. Each doll is printed on a separate piece of linen, and the color of each doll remains amazingly crisp and brilliant! Aunt Jemima measures 10.5" wide by 35" long, and Uncle Mose measures 10" wide by 35" long. (Please note that any variation in color noted in photos is a result of lighting issues and light reflection only. Background of linen remains its original, crisp, bright white with each doll retaining its "like-new" consistent and brilliant color.)

Mild foxing is noted only on Aunt Jemima and not on Uncle Mose, likely due to the manner of storage. The Uncle Mose doll fabric was folded and stored inside of the Aunt Jemima fabric, and then they were placed inside of the envelope, with only Aunt Jemima coming into contact, for decades, with the high-acidic content of the envelope which caused the foxing. Fold lines are evident as well; however, these fold lines are the result of original factory packaging and storage in the envelope for over 100 years. Other than the foxing as described, the pair remain in truly fine condition!

A rare opportunity for the advanced collector to acquire an uncut, complete pair of C1917, Aunt Jemima and Uncle Mose Advertising Rag Dolls, suitable for framing!

This offering will only be sold as a pair; offers for an individual piece will not be entertained.

Offered are two, choice, circa 1920s - 1930 era hickory shaft golf clubs.

The first club, the ladies' 7 iron, comes with considerable pedigree. It was offered by the golf professional Frank Belwood while employed as Club Pro at Garden City Golf Club in NY. This club is a handsome ladies' mid iron with a somewhat low profile construction measuring 38 inches to the heel. The hickory shaft has a nice original patina. Noted is a slight bend towards the club head with a faint split at the hosel. The leather grip appears original and is in good condition except for some loss as seen in the photo. The club head sports dot face styling and is in good condition with mild leading edge dings. The back of the club is stamped "F.BELWOOD - GARDEN CITY"- (within a double oval) plus "SPECIAL - HAND FORGED, and (L)" indicating a ladies club.

The second club, a Putting Cleek, is in very good overall condition sporting a solid hickory shaft with an original patina. The early grip is generally good except for a small missing piece. The head sports a dot-punched style on the front, and the shaft is straight. The back is stamped with the following: "GUARANTEED HAND FORGED - PUTTING CLEEK" - and H. WATE?? SPECIAL" in an oval.

SOME HISTORY ON FRANK H. BELWOOD:
Garden City Golf Club, founded in 1899, was one of the first golf courses established in the USA, and in 1902, hosted the US OPEN. Frank H. Belwood was a successful golfer for many years and was the club professional for Garden City Golf Club in NY until the early 50s. He was a charter member of the PGA, and during the early history of American golf, he participated in various major tournaments competing against the best players of his era.

ADDITIONAL INFO ON THE PUTTING CLEEK:
A putting cleek has more loft than a putter. The cleek putting style was popular in early golf and it was said to give the player more options. On smoother greens, the players hands would be placed forward in the stroke to de-loft the club and get the ball rolling smoothly. On bumpy/rough greens it would be held normally and the extra loft would "raise the ball above the roughness".

Offered are two, circa 1920 - 1930 era, hickory shaft golf clubs.

The first club, dating to 1925, has "TED RAY SEVENTY-TWO" "LADIES - SPECIAL - HAND FORGED and PUTTER" stamped on the back of the face. This WILSON-made club measures 33" from the heel to the top of the shaft and appears minimally used. The sturdy hickory shaft has a mild bend from front to back on the lower shaft. The leather grip is in good condition.

The second club, a mid iron, circa 1920-1930, is stamped on the on the back of club "KRO-FORGED PROFESSIONAL" and measures 37.5 inches from the top of the shaft to the heel. This KROYDON made club sports a sturdy straight shaft and a good original grip. There is faint superficial pitting to the club head.

Both clubs enjoy original patina and have mild wear commensurate with the clubs' use and their nearly 100 years of age. A delightful duo, ready for play or display!

SOME HISTORY:

https://www.si.com/golf/news/ted-ray-was-golfs-original-long-driver-and-a-true-original

It is worth a visit to this SPORTS ILLUSTRATED link for some great info on this delightful man, MAJOR winner and unheralded pro golfer TED RAY who deserves to be in the GOLF HALL OF FAME!

Measuring 3 3/4 inches long, this circa 1920s, miniature, Black Mammy doll is unique in construction- its head and body have been fashioned from an old black rubber baby nursing nipple!

This Mammy nipple doll is more unusual and less seldom found because she holds a tiny, plastic, white baby in her left arm. Typically when found, the Mammy nipple doll has empty arms.

Mammy’s sweet little face has been hand-painted, and she has been nicely dressed in a red and white polka dot dress with linen apron and red flowered head scarf. The little baby wears a linen gown edged with lace and has a molded face.

Condition of this wonderful miniature Mammy is very good! With the exception of her nipple face which has contorted a bit due to the ravages of time, she is in delightful condition!

Offered is a wonderful 1934 edition of Topsy Turvy and the Tin Clown by Bernice G. Anderson and illustrated by Esther Friend.

This seldom found copy was originally published in 1932 by Rand McNally & Company of New York.

This copy has superficial scratches to the front and back covers, as well as surface soiling, and wear on book cover edges.(see photos). The front cover has a slight tear at the crease that does not effect strength or integrity of the cover board. A couple of pages have minor staining. The binding is super-tight and all pages remain present.

Topsy's adventures are divided into three chapters in length, approximately 59 numbered pages. Book is filled with a variety of black-ink and black and red illustrations as represented in photos. The story of Topsy was likely inspired by the Little Black Sambo stories which originated at the turn of the 20th century. PLEASE NOTE: in the photos, the printing seems light and faded- not so! It is merely the function of over-lighting or light reflection.

A wonderful and truly RARE book not to be missed!

Please see the other Topsy Turvy book available for separate purchase, a 1938 copy of Topsy Turvy's PigTails.

Offered is an utterly fabulous, one-of-a-kind, 1880s, piece of original artwork by Edward West Merrill (1841-1910) of Concord, New Hampshire.

Merrill, known for creating extraordinary art collages of cut paper, cut birch bark, ink, and watercolor mounted on black construction weight paper, fashioned this particular piece depicting the fictional African-American Blackville Debating Society, by encompassing all of these preferred artistic mediums.

One can see the beautiful grain of the white birch bark Merrill used to execute each figure and form, which he then detailed using black ink and added depth and color by applying varying natural tones of watercolor. Merrill added additional elements of detail to the black mounting paper using a lighter toned ink, such as the entrance/exit door to the left of the moderator. The resulting work of art is simply exquisite!

Merrill's subject matter ranged from various genre pieces to racist scenes inspired by Solomon Eytinge, Jr.'s, (1833-1905) "Blackville" series that Eytinge created for Harper's Weekly in the 1870s. Merrill's artwork offered here was inspired by Solomom Eytinge's "Blackville" lithograph printed in the January 4, 1879, edition of Harper's Weekly. (A photo of Eytinge's litho is presented for client reference and comparison to E.W. Merrill's work and is not available for sale.) When comparing the two pieces, one will note that Merrill changed his artwork from that of Eytinge's by eliminating one of the "scorner's" in the right corner, many of the club members featured at the bottom Eytinge's litho as well as the signage above the debate moderator and by adding the 25 lb "Best Soap" box under the moderator's table leg.

At the base of this work reads the following: The Blackwell Debating Society- "Wedder Lord Dorwin Involved Hisself or Somebody Else." -The Scorner in the Corner Will Reply Drawn By E.W. Merrill Concord NH .

Measurements including the handsome, original oak frame are 26" wide x 18.5" in length. The original hanging eyelets have been removed for ease in shipping and are present under the tape as seen in the photo of the verso of the artwork.

Offered for sale is a hard to find, turn-of-the-century, apothecary pharmacy bottle that stands 7.5 inches tall. The stopper is embossed with a large "W" signifying WRIGHT's Patent.

This unusual tincture bottle is in excellent condition. The bottle interior is clear and the stopper, which sports ground glass, is in very nice condition except for some unobtrusive interior edge chips and two very minor flecks on the (L) edge of the stopper.

A hard to find circa 1900 patent pharmacy bottle ready for your collection!

This is a hard-to-find, pharmacy or drug store female specific tin labeled “SEDETS” – Pain pills from the 1940 – 1950 era. The tin measures 2 inches and is in very good condition complete with unused contents. There are faint scratches and minor wear areas. Marked "Rexall Drug Company" and "Patented 1938 in Canada".

This is part of many “female specific” old pharmacy stock items for sale.

Having conceived of the revolutionary idea of a lithographed, molded-mask doll face in 1901, New Yorker, Albert Bruckner applied for and was awarded the patent for his idea that same year. All Bruckner dolls were then stamped, "PAT'D JULY 8th 1901" on the lower right neck edge.

From 1901-1924, Bruckner produced this original, 12" Topsy Turvy doll for Horsman's Babyland Rag Doll line that features Caucasian, "Betty", on one end and African American, "Topsy", on the other. The inspiration for this doll is based on the character of Topsy in Harriet Beecher Stowe's classic 1852 novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin".

The Bruckner Topsy Turvy doll was advertised in a 1907 Babyland Rag Doll catalog as follows:

"TOPSY-TURVY---What is this?
Looks like just a pretty miss.
But turn her over and you'll find,
She is quite another kind.
First she's White and then she's Black,
Turn her over and turn her back.
Topsy that side--Betty this--
Yet complete, each little Miss."

The detail on this hard to find classic doll is lovely. Both heads indeed have the pressed, molded mask faces with lithographed features. Topsy's face is in mint condition! Betty's face is very fine with superficial rubs to the flesh-toned coating of her mask; her lithographed facial features, however, remain beautiful. (Such rubs are not unexpected as these particular doll masks are, unfortunately, prone to rubbing.)

Grinning Topsy has red bows tied to her black mohair braided pigtails which are tucked into her red headscarf. Her red blouse, which matches her head scarf, is trimmed with cream banding around the sleeve and neck edges. The cream scarf she wears around her shoulders tucks into her very full, red/cream checked, gingham skirt. Flip her over, and....

Betty's more subtle Anglo face and her hair are lithographed. She wears the same red/cream checked gingham fabric of which both her dress and ruffled bonnet are constructed. Over her very full gingham dress, Betty also wears a sheer, ruffled pinafore.

Both dolls have the typical "mitten" hands of the stuffed rag dolls of this era. There are no other difficulties to report other than the rubs to Betty's face and some tiny, stray (original) glue spots here and there. No rips, tears, soiling, or odors, and she has been stored in a smoke-free home. The photos show it all- these two girls are a charming pair! A very difficult to find doll in near excellent condition!

Offered is a fine, all-original, aluminum, golf mallet putter from the Dave Cuthbert shop of St. Andrews Scotland.

This well balanced and sleek appearing club sports a straight hickory shaft and a nice leather grip. Deep checkering lines adorn the face and a well struck "D. CUTHBERT - SPECIAL" stamp is seen on the top.

The condition is very good with the expected small dings, scratches and wear of a club that is over 100 years old. The club measures 34 inches from the sole to the end of the club.

SOME HISTORY

David Scott “Dave” Cuthbert was born in St. Andrews, Scotland in 1885. He got his start in golf as a caddy at St. Andrews Golf Club, and as a young man, he worked in Old Tom Morris’ golf shop. He often caddied for Freddie Tait who was one of the greatest amateurs in Great Britain. In 1912, Cuthbert learned from a friend who had worked in America that Huntingdon Valley Country Club was looking for a golf professional, so he set sail at once. He arrived in Philadelphia during a March blizzard with his golf clubs and a suitcase. He then proceeded to seek out the Huntingdon Valley green chairman. Without an appointment he announced that he was David Cuthbert of St. Andrews and he had come all the way from Scotland for the position of golf professional. He was hired and stayed seven years. He relocated to Canada for four years and returned to PA when Ashbourne Country Club opened in 1923. Cuthbert was Ashbourne’s first golf pro, and he remained there for fifteen years. In the club's opening year, 1923, Cuthbert finished second by one stroke in the 1923 Pennsylvania Open.

Manufactured circa 1920's by the Wurts Creation Company, this scarcely-found, Black Chef, kitchen collectible doubles as both a string holder and a grocery list memo board!

Constructed of painted wood that is nailed and glued together, this vintage collectible retains quite a few of its original but yellowed-with-age grocery shopping list pages. The holder/board retains a ball of string and a stub of an older, red pencil. It also has an inkwell cut-out that would have accommodated a bottle of ink; presumably, an inkwell pen once resided beside it versus the current pencil.

The holder/board remains in all original condition with no repaint or repair. The black chef is not painted on but is a decal--all original. The pale blue paint has appropriate, minor, age-related wear as noted in photos.

Has great visual appeal and displays wonderfully!

Offered is a wonderful example of a late 19thC Pharmacy "tool of the trade" known as a pill machine but often referred to as a pill roller.

Pill machines were designed to enhance the productivity of the early pharmacist, and this design was, indeed, popular for many, many years. This pill machine is designed with 24 tubes for medicine-making.

The condition is very good, sporting a nice patina commensurate with its age and use. It is constructed of walnut and embellished with brass edge guards as well as brass grooved molds. The base measures approximately 11.5" L x 7" W x 1.5" H including the footed base. The paddle is 15.25"L x 2.25"W.

An apothecary classic, ready for your collection!

Measuring just under 2 inches high, this cast iron, Black, Uncle Sam pencil sharpener was made in Occupied Japan in 1948. In wonderful condition with very minor paint loss due to light use, this piece is stamped on the backside of Uncle Sam's head: "Made in Occupied Japan".

A wonderful and rarely found piece of Black Americana!

Measuring 33 inches long x 15 inches high, this vintage 1869, black ink, original lithograph was published as an art supplement to Appleton's Journal.

The litho was executed by John Karst with his signature appearing in the lower left hand corner. Highly detailed, the litho reproduces a bustling New Orleans' dock scene featuring numerous slaves at work.

This litho was professionally re-framed using museum-quality, acid-free materials in 2004. The frame is a classic styled, black painted, beaded, hardwood accented with a dark rose, acid-free mat.

A fascinating glimpse into life on the docks of the Mississippi River at New Orleans!

Please note that any white spots or streaking appearing in photos are the result of light reflection and are not damage to the litho.