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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Antiques in Abandoned House

« on: September 20, 2011, 05:57:53 pm »

Honestly, I would leave this guy alone. He sounds like an elderly man who might not be in full controll of his thoughts and feelings. He may have great sentimental value attached to these things. They belong to him and he is their owner. If he has children taking care of him you might talk to them, but other than that, let well enough alone. I think it is more important to let this guy be than to upset him with this. There's nothing in your photos that can't be acquired for a couple hundred. I think the man's well-being is more important.

  Actually, I've known the owner for close to 25 years and his mind is 100% - he's just not very friendly, and never has been. I think the reason for the stuff being left in that house, is because he and his siblings couldn't decide who got what, after his parents died without having a written will. I've seen houses abandoned for this reason before, and it's a situation where nobody ever wins. But with the surviving children now in their 80's or beyond, it won't be too much longer before the property ends up changing hands - I just hope the house and its contents are still there by that time.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Antiques in Abandoned House

« on: September 20, 2011, 12:23:52 pm »

I thought it looked like Humpty Dumpty, but I can't seem to find any like it on eBay or anywhere else for that matter. The ones with the crown on the lid must be quite uncommon or something, which I assume makes them more valuable. Do you know if they were made from actual plastic, or that much heavier (and brittle) material known as bakelite?
 As for the phonographs, here in Canada the console models typically sell for around $300-500, though Edison machines are usually worth much more.
 The TV in the picture was one of two the owner gave me that day, and I still have it along with dozens of other old TVs. It's a 1953 Sparton, and believe it or not it actually still worked when I got it home that day (had to replace one broken tube though).
 Any ideas as to the manufacturer of the stove? I'd still like to know when/where it was made.

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Antique Questions Forum / Antiques in Abandoned House

« on: September 20, 2011, 08:29:47 am »

A few years ago - 13 years to be exact - I had the opportunity to take some video of a long-abandoned house out in the country. The owner was giving me a couple of antique TV's and while there, allowed me to tour the place. I recently watched that video for the first time in years, and was quite surprised, and disturbed, at the number of valuable antiques that had been left there to decay. The house is still standing, but is beginning to collapse on one side. The owner, now in his 80's, refuses to let anyone on the property anymore, citing concerns over safety, but personally I think it's because he's upset about a number of break-ins over the years. To my knowledge, most of the antiques are still there, and leaving them in this old place is a tremendous risk. How the building has avoided arson in the 45 years it's been vacant is remarkable, but even if somebody doesn't burn it, it will still eventually fall down and one way or another these valuable antiques will be lost.
I'm posting this message in the hopes someone can give me an estimated value of some of the antiques, or at least identify the manufacturers / models so I can do some more fruitful research. I want to present this information to the owner in the hopes that he'll come to his senses and at the very least move the stuff somewhere safer.

Below are some pictures (frame grabs from the aforementioned video) of some of the items for your examination:



The object on the refrigerator caught my eye - it looks like a vintage cookie jar, but I cannot identify the brand. It doesn't seem to be a King Cole, Tetley, or Humpty Dumpty jar, unless I didn't do enough research.



This beautiful old stove, cluttered with other vintage kitchen items, is probably the most valuable item here. I figure it has to be worth at least $1000, but unless someone can recognize the manufacturer, there's not much I can determine from this image.





Two old phonographs, one a console and the other a table model. No idea as to the make or model numbers.



This looks like quite an early Singer sewing machine, though I can't tell too much from this poor quality image.

Any info on this stuff would be appreciated. I doubt I can talk any sense into the owner, but perhaps some significant dollar figures might just make it through his thick skull. It's worth a try, at least.