Campaign collectibles: Panning for political gold
By Shirley Zilberstein
CNN Political Unit
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Buttons and stickers and signs, oh my!
Mark Evans of Avon, New York, started collecting political memorabilia at the age of eight, while volunteering for John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign.
Now a full-time collector and dealer of memorabilia, Evans said he eventually had to narrow his collection to 14 presidential campaigns. Grover Cleveland is his favorite.
Redding Ridge, Connecticut, resident Curtis Lindner specializes in political items from the 19th Century and lays claim to some rare photographs of presidential candidates from the mid-1800's.
Mort Berkowitz of New York City has designed campaign buttons for candidates in recent years and is the proud owner of a William McKinley button from his 1896 run for president, the first year buttons as we know them -- called celluloid buttons -- were made and distributed.
These men were among the dozens of dealers and collectors who showcased their goods at the American Political Items Collectors (APIC) show last week in McLean, Virginia, outside Washington, D.C.
If you're an American history buff, if you've stored away stickers or buttons, autographs or gimmicks from past presidential campaigns, if you're willing to pay top dollar for something that was probably given away for free before your lifetime, shows like this are made for you.
Tables and cases full of items used to promote political campaigns were on display for purchase, spanning the centuries.
"We literally run from George Washington to George W. Bush," APIC president Brian Krapf said, scanning the ballroom where memorabilia collectors were milling around, inspecting tiny buttons with even tinier slogans on them.
Collectors here take their hobby seriously and are willing to pay top dollar. Just how much? Several described the "holy grail" of political items as a button featuring the faces of Ohio Gov. James Cox, the Democratic presidential nominee in 1920, and his running mate Franklin D. Roosevelt.
"Cox had a personal problem with the size of his nose. He did not like to be photographed," Krapf said. "And as a result there are very few of these pins existing."
If you find one of these buttons, Krapf added, it can bring in $75,000.
Bob Coup, an Americana dealer with some off-beat political toys on display, said he once had a Cox-Roosevelt button. He sold it for $3,500. He wishes he'd held on to it for just a while longer.
History is expensive. And what's junk to one guy might be gold to the next.
If you're looking for gold yourself, check out APIC's calendar for upcoming shows: http://www.apic.us/Calendar/
