Someone on this forum was into collecting political pins

Was that @toughcoins or someone else? I can't remember who kept posting them in the past. The reason I ask is because I have been going through everything I own getting ready to move and just came across my multigenerational collection and I have no idea if I should do anything with them and could use some advice. I know some of the are reproductions but many of them are genuine.

If it was one of the folks still on this forum, please let me know.

Thanks

 

These are few that are NOT reproductions.

 

That was @JohnHamilton

 

Thanks Randy. Hope you're feeling better.

 

Oh yeah… Thanks for asking. Had to get a bad foot rebuilt. Long healing process but other than surgery stuff, it no longer hurts to be on my feet. I forgot what that felt like.

 

I logged in to respond, but it seems that the initial posts have disappeared.

I know why it won't work. It's @JoeNation. He has so little respect for me that my help would be of no interest to him. I have him on "ignore."

 

Joe wanted you to see the collection of campaign pins in post number two.

 

It looks like it's all there to me. It might be the ignore you have me on. Of course you won't see this either.

 

I saw the picture on another site. The early 1900s pieces appear to be lithograph reproductions. The genuine pieces are celluloid buttons with paper pictures covered with a thin layer of celluloid.

I'll post picture of one of the real thing when I can get to my desktop.

 

Take Joe off ignore so he can talk with you

 

I either didn’t realize or don’t remember that you had foot surgery Randy. Sorry that you’ve been in such discomfort. Hoping this fixes your issues for good.

Happy Trails there Hop-along . . .

 

The 18 second mark shows the actual surgery.

 

On closer inspection, many of these are reproductions. Some aren't. On the edge of many of the more colorful buttons, it says "Kleenex Tissues '68". Reproductions.

 

These do not have the Kleenex Tissues '68 on the edges.

 

Here is one of the buttons that is in the picture, a 1904 Alton B. Parker. Parker lost to Teddy Roosevelt that year.



This piece has a back paper, which is sometimes seen on the early buttons. If his elephant does not have that, and has an image that directly printed on the metal, it is a reproduction.

 

I just took him off "ignore."

Chances you can't buy a group of pins like that from a dealer unless you selected them one at a time. If genuine, they would be worth a few thousand dollars. The Woodrow Wilson piece, "Man of the Hour" is a classic that has brought over $1,000 in some auctions. I am not fan of Woodrow Wilson, so I don't have one.

These reproductions have caused their share of trouble for the hobby.

Here are a couple of other genuine examples.



This is a large two and half inch Goldwater piece.

 

Chances are the vast majority or all the pieces is this group are genuine. They are of a later vintage.

The pieces with company names one them, that are not known to be button makers, like "Kleenex Tissues" are sneaky. At least the non-collector has a chance to catch them. The reproduction buttons with no advertising name on them are nasty. They have been used to cheat people on many occasions.

Unlike coins, medals, tokens, stamps and even autographs, I am not aware of a company that certifies pin back buttons. There are some very valuable pieces. A James Cox and Franklin D. Roosevelt jugate button has brought over $50,000 at auction. I came close to owning one, but I had just bought a big coin, and my wife would not let me spend the $18,000 asking price. The same piece sold for $34,000 a few months later. Of course some of that money went the auction house that sold it, but the buyer at $18,000 made over $10,000.

Here is the piece I missed. Yes, I got to photograph it.



And here is my "hole filler" which actually more impressive. It is an unused window decal. These pieces have sold for up to $1,000. The previous owner was Edmond Sullivan who was a well-known author in the political items field. I knew him quite well.



Franklin D. Roosevelt was the only vice presidential candidate who lost, who later came back to win the presidency. That was even more remarkable because he had lost the use of his legs from polio. Scarcity plus the fact that these pieces have early photos of FDR on them is why these items are so expensive.

The people were tired of Woodrow Wilson, and the country was looking "to return to normalcy" as Warren G. Harding put it. The Democrats didn't have much money to spend on the 1920 campaign. The Republicans also didn't issue that many buttons. This Harding and Coolidge button is scarce and sells for up to $2,000.