Historical items to be sold on auction block
By MICAIAH WISE?BILGER Sentinel reporter mwise@lewistownsentinel.comArticle Photos
Fact Box
If you go:
What: Pa. Historical and Museum Commission surplus auction
When: 9 a.m. Saturday
Where: Ziegler Auction Company, 1550 Sand Hill Road, Hummelstown
HARRISBURG - Long underwear, model trains, a 1940s Pennsylvania license plate and a candle-dipping wheel are only some of the 1,600 historical items that will be auctioned off Saturday near Harrisburg.
The event is being held by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission to sell items that it no longer needs, according to a press release from PHMC.
Railroad buffs and model train collectors should be especially interested in the large selection of toy trains and memorabilia of the historic railroads that traversed the state, according to the release.
The sale includes about 18 engines, many box cars, 170 station sign numbers, railroad crossing arms, railroad lanterns, and Lionel trains, according to the auction list.
Household items, tools, furniture, toys, artwork, clothing, wagons and more can be found on the auction list at www.zieglerauction.com. Some photos of the items also are on the Web site.
"These are items that have no special significance to the history of Pennsylvania or they duplicate what is already in our collection," PHMC Executive Director Barbara Franco said. "The commission's collections committee reviews the items and determines if they should be designated for public sale."
The auction will begin at 9 a.m. at the Ziegler Auction Company, 1550 Sand Hill Road, Hummelstown. Items may be reviewed beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Prior to being designated for sale, the items were offered to other PHMC-run sites and museums as well as to historical museums across the state and nation, according to the release.
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and many times have value to private collectors," Franco said.
Funds raised from the auction will be used only for the purchase or conservation of artifacts that contribute to the PHMC mission of interpreting Pennsylvania history for the public, the release states.
