Wednesday, June 13, 2012

estate auction....

We have some new members of the farm. Twelve little keets. You know how much I like my guinea hens... and I do agree, they can be a "pain" sometimes... but they sure are great watch dogs and tick control. We had found a nest of eggs from one of our hens, and since they really don't make great mothers, we took the eggs and put them in an incubator. Sadly, none of the eggs hatched (something went wrong because they did make a start) and then our hen was killed by the fox... so, when I saw these babies at the feed store... well....
This picture pretty much says it all. We're currently down to three guinea fowl.. free ranging I do take my chances.. but I think it's worth it and if I have to buy new ones each year, so be it.

I heard about this auction from a couple of people. My dear friend Mary sent me an email and an article about the auction and then my Dad gave me a call. I really don't know how I feel about auctions, while I appreciate the opportunity to find treasures like this, I feel very sad that  these items  , which meant something to someone.. are now out for the world to bid on. (by the way... isn't this a beauty)

This particular  auction was all about carriages, sleighs and other horse drawn items. The gentleman that had  owned  them had passed and his family just didn't know what to do with everything... to start  with over 40 carriages and sleighs in various conditions. It had been  his hobby to collect and  restore horse drawn vehicles and this collection had pieces that he had been  working on, other pieces that needed work.. a few that were done... and then the parts to do his projects. 

Wheels, lights, seats... hardware... it was almost overwhelming. The auction was on   Saturday and since I work that day, Ed and I went to preview it all the day before. The more we looked, the more there was.... I almost didn't know where to begin or what we might (or might not) be interested in. Ed thought it would be fun to pick up a carriage or sleigh that was in decent shape, and have a winter restorations project.

There were more sleighs than carriages, and they were in pretty good shape. I sort of wonder if it's because a sleigh probably didn't get as much use as a farm wagon or carriage. And they were beautiful... I had to wonder what they looked like, brand new...I was really fond of this first one, sort of a Currier and Ives look. We decided that if it stayed a fair price, this would be something to bid on. We already have two sleighs that are usable, and one that needs to be restored... but we thought  that we can always sell a sleigh or two.

A couple of carriages caught my eye as well. I would love something like this, so we could take a couple of friends on a Sunday ride. And the whole preview went like that. So, we got a list and marked the ones we liked the best, in order, and decided to see what the bidding did. There were a number of people at the preview.. I couldn't tell if they were horse folks, like us, looking for treasurers or people looking for nice ornaments for the front lawn.

We also had a few of these on the list... once you have a study under carriage a top could be easily made....

It just went on and on... and I sort of felt sadder and sadder as we looked...

They had their "faults" if you will....
But you can't beat craftsmanship........
Or the history they hold.. and sadly, stories that could be told......

Ed went to the auction, he said the crowd was "good".. and for the most part, the prices were fair. However that little sleigh I liked, went into a bidding war between two ladies. The final price on that one... $1300.00... way out of our budget.

But the day proved to be a good one for us. Ed managed to pick up two farm wagons for a very fair price... and they almost usable just as is....
And another neat point... the gentleman that had owned them, left a hand written note on each of these wagons.. telling about their history. Both coming from Maine families and built in the late 1800's. We haven't figured out just how they will be restored.. and I wished I had the opportunity to tell the gentleman that they will be well loved and used as they should be... behind a team.
But maybe, somehow he knows....