Destruction of American History: DON'T DO IT.

[TidiousTed]

I've seen people trash antique fountain pens for no other reason than "the nib is made of gold".

People collect things for stupid reasons as well. "Investment" is another word I hear thrown around.

These things do not make good investments. Just because they're old doesn't mean you can retire on them.

An antique fountain pen from 1900 in the NICEST and most working condition that you can find...Would give you about $1,000 (give or take a bit), tops. And that's a realistic price. but even if you have a hundred of these...you're not gonna retire on that.

Now that most banks are shaky again and people are getting interested in gold again another type of old object is in danger, fountain pens. Old fountain pens have nibs in either 14 or 18 carat gold and I've read about people just pulling the nib out and throwing away the rest.
Last time this happened here was back in the late 70s and back then another guy in my class and I took the telephone directory and found every bookshop in town and went to every one and bought every old fountain pen they had
We got them cheap too, no one apart from design students were interested in old fountain pens back then. When I show my collection on gatherings now I often get offered 10, 20 even 50 or 100 times what I payed for them back then. But I never sell any one though

 

[TidiousTed]

Without a doubt. But we went thru a time in this society, from the 50s to the 80s at least, when throwing away and tearing down were close to a religion - the backlash from a time, in the 30s and 40s, when you couldn't afford to throw anything away.

My favorite sad story is about Bill Bryson's dad, a nationally ranked sportswriter, who helped Bill assemble a truly rare collection of baseball cards. But Bill moved away to England after high school, and when he returned a few years later, the collection - estimated to be worth $8,000 - had been trashed.

That is how uncritically people accepted "out with the old." It trumped issues of value or thrift. It became personal - an act of generational forgetting.

People still throw the strangest things a way. When I lived in town I used to walk my dogs late at night and look into dumpsters where people were either moving away or fixing up flats.
One night I discovered 35 meters of original late 1900 century oak parapet panelling in good condition, another night two steamer trunks and 3 leather suitcases all in good condition and I could just go on.
I contacted the dumpster company and they said I could just take the panneling and it is now in one of the living rooms on my farm. I just fetched my old Landcruicer and filled it up with trunks and suitcases

The worst thing was that one of the suitcases was crammed full of old black and white photos, nicely marked and sorted in film envelopes. Photos ranging back to the mid twentes and the newest ones was from the early fifties. I thought it must have been a mistake so I found out who had thrown them in the dumpster and told them what I had found, but they were not interested in what they called "that old crap" and said I could just keep them.

 

[Shangas]

You know the stupid thing, don't you?

A fountain pen nib is worth about $5-$10. For it's gold.

A nice, working vintage pen, can be sold for anywhere between $50 for a run-of-the-mill one, for upwards of $500 for the really nice ones.

What makes more sense?

Smashing a pen to pieces to get the nib out to melt it for $5 worth of gold, for which you'll probably have to pay ten times as much to get to a gold-scrapper...

Resaccing the pen and selling it complete for a few hundred.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

That's why many of the great silent films no longer exist. In the '50s the studios burned many of these movies to recover the silver content from the film stock.

 

[Cousin Hepcat]

The worst thing was that one of the suitcases was crammed full of old black and white photos, nicely marked and sorted in film envelopes. Photos ranging back to the mid twentes and the newest ones was from the early fifties. I thought it must have been a mistake so I found out who had thrown them in the dumpster and told them what I had found, but they were not interested in what they called "that old crap" and said I could just keep them.

Now THAT is TRAGIC! Good for you for saving them. :eusa_clap

I've known people to take that attitude (old junk) towards their own family's photos & important momentos such as veterans' thank-you notes "from" presidents for military service; I'll never understand it -- those to me are the MOST valuable possessions I own, far more than any of the music-and-movies-related stuff.

 

[R.G. White]

The worst thing was that one of the suitcases was crammed full of old black and white photos, nicely marked and sorted in film envelopes. Photos ranging back to the mid twentes and the newest ones was from the early fifties. I thought it must have been a mistake so I found out who had thrown them in the dumpster and told them what I had found, but they were not interested in what they called "that old crap" and said I could just keep them.

I found this beautiful portrait at Goodwill from 1918.

On the back is written 'Uncle George Crossland.' There the man is in white tie for a professional photograph and apparently none of his decedents care in the least. I certainly hope it was a mistake, but anyway I have a new uncle George!

 

[rue]

I found this beautiful portrait at Goodwill from 1918.

On the back is written 'Uncle George Crossland.' There the man is in white tie for a professional photograph and apparently none of his decedents care in the least. I certainly hope it was a mistake, but anyway I have a new uncle George!

Uncle George look a lot like Leslie Howard!

 

[R.G. White]

Haha, he does. Maybe I should put him in the 'If you said you looked like one celebrity from the Golden Era...' thread!

 

[C-dot]

I don't buy anything old with making a profit in mind, because I'm buying it out of love or need. I want to take them in and preserve them for my kids or for future generations. When I see a radio gutted like the one at the beginning of this post and used for something else or when I see an old house remodeled into an open concept home to make the current buyer happy, I cringe. When I see, for example, an old house demolished / left to rot or when I see old family photos in a bin for sale, I cry. It breaks my heart that people don't care about them. I have a very hard time understanding why and no one can ever explain it to me, no matter how hard they try because it doesn't make any sense. These things are part of our history, but aside from most people on the lounge and maybe a select few out there, no one gets it.

I feel the same way you do. I don't know why, but it hurts me when someone doesn't care about an item that a person in the past - maybe someone in their family - cared so much about. Like my father's trains that I mentioned, or my grandfather's phone from the 1940's: He cared enough to keep it, and he must have had a million conversations on it, so I care about it too. Or my head vases - I like to think some lucky lady was so excited to receive a bouquet of flowers in them from her husband or boyfriend. Whoever owned my gramophone might have sat many nights listening to their favourite records on it, or dancing with friends.

You're so right, rue - Very few people understand that kind of sentimentality, especially when its not either a family owned piece or worth a lot of money.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I feel the same way. I look at some of the things I have and think about the people that had them and that this stuff was a part of their everyday life. How anybody can look at that as just old junk just makes me sick inside.

I feel the same way you do. I don't know why, but it hurts me when someone doesn't care about an item that a person in the past - maybe someone in their family - cared so much about. Like my father's trains that I mentioned, or my grandfather's phone from the 1940's: He cared enough to keep it, and he must have had a million conversations on it, so I care about it too. Or my head vases - I like to think some lucky lady was so excited to receive a bouquet of flowers in them from her husband or boyfriend. Whoever owned my gramophone might have sat many nights listening to their favourite records on it, or dancing with friends.

You're so right, rue - Very few people understand that kind of sentimentality, especially when its not either a family owned piece or worth a lot of money.

 

[TidiousTed]

I feel the same way. I look at some of the things I have and think about the people that had them and that this stuff was a part of their everyday life. How anybody can look at that as just old junk just makes me sick inside.

I think it is a feeling shared by many on this forum, I at least share it. And I've never collected things for its value in money. Why should I really, I never sell any of it, and I never will. I collected because old things give me pleasure to handle, too look at and to use if it is utensils or tools. Particularly tools as I come from a long line of woodworkers and carpenter and my workshop is full of tools 50 - 100 years old or older. I and the people who have used them before me have kept them sharp and in order and it gives me great pleasure to use tools I know that both my uncles, grand uncles, grand father and great grandfather have used.

 

[tonyb]

As I posted in another thread quite some time ago ...

I bought a pair of cufflinks made from old typewriter keys. They're pretty cool, but their very existence, in their present form, necessitated the destruction of an old typewriter, which is something of a sin. I thought of this as I contemplated handing over the dough, but hand it over I did.

Sure, typewriters were made by the millions upon millions, so it's easy to rationalize that I had no part in the destruction of anything particularly valuable. But I'm of the view that most anything that's lasted more or less intact for 70 or 80 or more years has acquired, by its very longevity, a certain status it didn't have when it was newer.

They made old radios by the gazillions, too, and many of them (but certainly not most) still exist. Got a couple of 'em myself, bought on the cheap. My cursory research indicates that neither has much monetary value, but they work (kinda) and I don't think I'd ever have any part in reducing them to parts.

 

[Earl Needham]

I sent a message to the seller of the item. He says that he received it with the amp and speakers torn out, and the doors torn off at the hinges. So he's selling off what's left. Damned shame.

Yep, a darned shame -- especially since he claims the unit was in WORKING CONDITION when he got it.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The thing is, every time somebody destroys or "repurposes" a functional artifact there's one less. They're not making any more of them and never will. And, sure, millions were made -- but once there were billions of passenger pigeons and it didn't matter how many of them you shot. And then one day there weren't any more.