Hardrock69
02-22-2007, 09:12 AM
$2.48 in thrift shop buys U.S. icon worth a fortune
What's your most extravagant or unusual thrift store find? Click here to e-mail Ms. Cheap.
I've always wanted to write a column about some lucky so-and-so who went to a thrift store and bought a $2 item that turned out to be worth six figures.
And today is my big chance.
Meet Michael Sparks, a Nashville music equipment technician for Soundcheck Nashville. The rolled-up document he happened upon last March, which he paid less than $3 for, is a rare copy of the Declaration of Independence. It might well fetch a quarter-million — or more.
Sparks found the document at the Music City Thrift Shop on Gallatin Road. He thought it was interesting and took it to the store office to ask for a price. The clerk took out a grease pencil and marked $2.48 on a piece of wood attached to the top of the document, and Sparks walked out the door with it.
"I saw that it said 1823 and I knew that the dec laration was 1776, and I
was just interested. It also said 'by order of the government','' said Sparks, who immediately started researching the piece online and through local historical sources. He determined that his lucky $2.48 find was an "official copy'' of the Declaration of Independence — one of 200 copies commissioned by John Quincy Adams in 1820, when Adams was secretary of state, and printed by William Stone in 1823.
$2.48 to yield vast return
"I'm told that it could go for between $200,000 and $300,000,'' said Sparks, who is preparing to sell his super find at auction next month through Raynors' Historical Collectible Auctions, a Burlington, N.C., auction house that specializes in historic documents.
Raynors' has Sparks' document listed on its Web site (www.hcaauctions.com) for the March 22 auction with a price range of $250,000-$350,000, with bidding opening at $125,000.
Authenticity not doubted
Bob Raynor, president of Raynors', said that when Sparks first sent him photographs of the 25- by 30-inch heavily shellacked Declaration, he was "about 70 percent confident. But when we quickly looked at it there was no question that it was authentic.
"The conserver (Etherington Conservation Services in Greensboro) had done three other Stone declarations, and we were able to measure" things such as the distance from letter to letter and the size of certain random letters, "and it conformed perfectly.''
Plus, Raynor (and the other folks I talked to about it — Wayne Moore at the Tennessee State Archives, Bryan Draper at Etherington) said the markings and the placement of Stone's name in the upper left corner, and of John Quincy Adams' name in the right corner, were the same as the other official copies.
So is it authentic?
"Yes,'' said Raynor. "Let me say it another way, 'This baby is good!' ''
Sparks, who says he was only mildly interested in early American history before his major thrifting moment, has become something of a Declaration buff over the past year: "John Quincy Adams had Mr. William Stone make a facsimile of the original Declaration,'' said Sparks, explaining that the 1776 document had deteriorated from so much handling and exposure to light that Adams saw a need to share exact copies of the document with all of the states and a number of public officials.
Sparks found out about Etherington and personally delivered the parchment to the company for a $4,000, four-month conservation job that entailed removing layers of shellac and working to bring the document back to its most pristine condition.
Declaration is best find
Sparks says he has been a thrift-store junkie for years, shopping two days a week most weeks at various stores around town. He looks mostly for sterling silver pieces and other collectibles and says his best finds until the Declaration were things like a Baccarat cat for $1.99 that he found was worth around $150 and a collectible Zippo table lighter that he paid $2 for and found was worth $700.
"I am a thrift-store junkie. It is an inexpensive hobby,'' he said, noting that he went back to Music City Thrift after his find to tell the management about his good fortune with the $2.48 Declaration.
Manager Kay Boner said she was glad to hear the news.
"We just didn't know what we had, and of course we would like to have gotten more, but it shows that you can find all kind of things in our store. That is what thrift shopping is. We love it when people find something really good. That's what attracts people to come in — they think they will find that fabulous deal. I am very happy for the guy,'' she said. "And he is so nice.''
Sparks is a tiny bit conflicted about selling the document. He has gotten pretty attached to it as he has learned more and more about it.
"I have friends who say, 'Why don't you just keep it'?'' he said. "I have fallen in love with it, but if I had $250,000 would I buy it? No.''
So, if it does sell for the huge amount he hopes, what will Sparks do with the money?
"I'll probably buy a brand-new used car, and maybe a brand-new guitar, you never know!''
Oh, and he plans to keep a little bit back to do some more thrift store shopping — "Nothing over $2.99, though!''
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070222/COLUMNIST0401/702220390
Here is a .pdf copy of the auction catalog from the above web site:
http://www.hcaauctions.com/PDF/2007_03.PDF
And here is a short list of the highlighted items of the auction on March 22:
Upcoming Highlights in the March 22nd Raynors' Finest Auction.
Stone Copy of the Declaration of Independence; Commissioned in 1823 by then Secretary of State JQ Adams, and printed by William Stone. lot 043
Confederate General Leonidas Polk Archive lot 114
Letter Written by Andrew Jackson as President, February 1831, Discussing "the true reading of the Constitution." lot 047
1869 Letter Regarding the "capturing, or killing if necessary, Frank James and Jesse James, the murderers of John W. Sheets " lot 141
War-Date Robert E. Lee Letter Ordering a Naval Commander to Request a Vessel from General Ripley in Charleston lot 086
The Daily Richmond Examiner 1861-1865 - Enormous Newspaper Archive Of Over 800 Issues lot 081
Superb Slave Dealers Collection lot 051
George A. Custer Manuscript Document Signed Introducing a "Good Indian" lot 140
President Jefferson Davis Assures His Secretary of War of Lee's Plans lt 110
French and Indian War Recruiting Broadside lot 002
What's your most extravagant or unusual thrift store find? Click here to e-mail Ms. Cheap.
I've always wanted to write a column about some lucky so-and-so who went to a thrift store and bought a $2 item that turned out to be worth six figures.
And today is my big chance.
Meet Michael Sparks, a Nashville music equipment technician for Soundcheck Nashville. The rolled-up document he happened upon last March, which he paid less than $3 for, is a rare copy of the Declaration of Independence. It might well fetch a quarter-million — or more.
Sparks found the document at the Music City Thrift Shop on Gallatin Road. He thought it was interesting and took it to the store office to ask for a price. The clerk took out a grease pencil and marked $2.48 on a piece of wood attached to the top of the document, and Sparks walked out the door with it.
"I saw that it said 1823 and I knew that the dec laration was 1776, and I
was just interested. It also said 'by order of the government','' said Sparks, who immediately started researching the piece online and through local historical sources. He determined that his lucky $2.48 find was an "official copy'' of the Declaration of Independence — one of 200 copies commissioned by John Quincy Adams in 1820, when Adams was secretary of state, and printed by William Stone in 1823.
$2.48 to yield vast return
"I'm told that it could go for between $200,000 and $300,000,'' said Sparks, who is preparing to sell his super find at auction next month through Raynors' Historical Collectible Auctions, a Burlington, N.C., auction house that specializes in historic documents.
Raynors' has Sparks' document listed on its Web site (www.hcaauctions.com) for the March 22 auction with a price range of $250,000-$350,000, with bidding opening at $125,000.
Authenticity not doubted
Bob Raynor, president of Raynors', said that when Sparks first sent him photographs of the 25- by 30-inch heavily shellacked Declaration, he was "about 70 percent confident. But when we quickly looked at it there was no question that it was authentic.
"The conserver (Etherington Conservation Services in Greensboro) had done three other Stone declarations, and we were able to measure" things such as the distance from letter to letter and the size of certain random letters, "and it conformed perfectly.''
Plus, Raynor (and the other folks I talked to about it — Wayne Moore at the Tennessee State Archives, Bryan Draper at Etherington) said the markings and the placement of Stone's name in the upper left corner, and of John Quincy Adams' name in the right corner, were the same as the other official copies.
So is it authentic?
"Yes,'' said Raynor. "Let me say it another way, 'This baby is good!' ''
Sparks, who says he was only mildly interested in early American history before his major thrifting moment, has become something of a Declaration buff over the past year: "John Quincy Adams had Mr. William Stone make a facsimile of the original Declaration,'' said Sparks, explaining that the 1776 document had deteriorated from so much handling and exposure to light that Adams saw a need to share exact copies of the document with all of the states and a number of public officials.
Sparks found out about Etherington and personally delivered the parchment to the company for a $4,000, four-month conservation job that entailed removing layers of shellac and working to bring the document back to its most pristine condition.
Declaration is best find
Sparks says he has been a thrift-store junkie for years, shopping two days a week most weeks at various stores around town. He looks mostly for sterling silver pieces and other collectibles and says his best finds until the Declaration were things like a Baccarat cat for $1.99 that he found was worth around $150 and a collectible Zippo table lighter that he paid $2 for and found was worth $700.
"I am a thrift-store junkie. It is an inexpensive hobby,'' he said, noting that he went back to Music City Thrift after his find to tell the management about his good fortune with the $2.48 Declaration.
Manager Kay Boner said she was glad to hear the news.
"We just didn't know what we had, and of course we would like to have gotten more, but it shows that you can find all kind of things in our store. That is what thrift shopping is. We love it when people find something really good. That's what attracts people to come in — they think they will find that fabulous deal. I am very happy for the guy,'' she said. "And he is so nice.''
Sparks is a tiny bit conflicted about selling the document. He has gotten pretty attached to it as he has learned more and more about it.
"I have friends who say, 'Why don't you just keep it'?'' he said. "I have fallen in love with it, but if I had $250,000 would I buy it? No.''
So, if it does sell for the huge amount he hopes, what will Sparks do with the money?
"I'll probably buy a brand-new used car, and maybe a brand-new guitar, you never know!''
Oh, and he plans to keep a little bit back to do some more thrift store shopping — "Nothing over $2.99, though!''
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070222/COLUMNIST0401/702220390
Here is a .pdf copy of the auction catalog from the above web site:
http://www.hcaauctions.com/PDF/2007_03.PDF
And here is a short list of the highlighted items of the auction on March 22:
Upcoming Highlights in the March 22nd Raynors' Finest Auction.
Stone Copy of the Declaration of Independence; Commissioned in 1823 by then Secretary of State JQ Adams, and printed by William Stone. lot 043
Confederate General Leonidas Polk Archive lot 114
Letter Written by Andrew Jackson as President, February 1831, Discussing "the true reading of the Constitution." lot 047
1869 Letter Regarding the "capturing, or killing if necessary, Frank James and Jesse James, the murderers of John W. Sheets " lot 141
War-Date Robert E. Lee Letter Ordering a Naval Commander to Request a Vessel from General Ripley in Charleston lot 086
The Daily Richmond Examiner 1861-1865 - Enormous Newspaper Archive Of Over 800 Issues lot 081
Superb Slave Dealers Collection lot 051
George A. Custer Manuscript Document Signed Introducing a "Good Indian" lot 140
President Jefferson Davis Assures His Secretary of War of Lee's Plans lt 110
French and Indian War Recruiting Broadside lot 002