Unfamiliar objects confuse, amuse collectors

Unfamiliar objects used by our ancestors continue to confuse and amuse today’s collectors.

“Whatsits” were a popular subject on television shows.

We identified buggy-whip holders, eyeglasses for chickens to prevent them from pecking each other, even a spring-loaded candle that was attached to a clock and lit the fireplace each morning.

Most unidentified whatsits were made for kitchen or farm use.

One item that came in many shapes was the chicken waterer, still used today in a modern form.

Early examples look like glass jars turned upside down over a shallow bowl of water, a sort of fountain for barnyard chickens.

Marked pottery examples by short-lived factories bring good prices because of their rarity.

Waterers by commercial factories that made many of these odd objects sell for $100 to $200.

Q. My mom died in July, and I’m trying to sort through some of her belongings. One of the items I’m trying to price, possibly for sale, is her hutch. Printed inside the drawers are the words, “Rockingham Temple Stuart Colonial Modern Dinette.” I believe it is maple and it’s like new. I looked online and saw prices as low as $50 and as high as $650. Can you help out in any way, either by suggesting a price range or telling me where I might find some information?

A. Temple Stuart Furniture was founded in Baldwinville, Mass., in 1904. Rockingham is one of the lines it made. The company was bought by a Canadian company, Roxton Temple Stuart Ltd. of Waterloo, Quebec, in about 1987. Your mother’s hutch would sell for about $200 to $300.

Q. Have you heard of a California pottery company called California Cleminsons Galagray? When I was married 50 years ago, an aunt gave me a set of the pottery’s dishes as a wedding present. The dishes are marked with those words. I would like to know more about the set.

A. George and Betty Cleminson founded a pottery called Californian Clay in 1941. Betty was the designer and George handled the business end. They worked in their garage in Monterey Park, Calif., and later moved to a larger facility in El Monte, Calif. The company name was changed to California Cleminsons in 1943. Dinnerware, kitchenware and decorative items were made at the factory. Galagray is the pattern name of your dishes. Most Cleminsons pieces are marked. The pottery closed in 1963.

Q. Is there any interest in vintage dental things? My brother recently retired as a dentist. He has several pieces of furniture and equipment that belonged to an associate who retired when he was over 90 years old. He has a gray wood laboratory cabinet marked “American Cabinet Co.,” an old sterilizer that resembles a dishwasher, some old hand instruments and many old bottles of chemical supplies. If there are collectors of such things, how can I contact them?

A. Dental instruments, old bottles and dental cabinets are very collectible. American Cabinet Co. was founded in Two Rivers, Wis., in the early 1900s. Talk to local antique-dealers to find out who sells “technology.” Cabinets with drawers sell well. Prices can be found — for free — on our website, Kovels.com. The first dental furniture sold under the American Cabinet Co. name was designed by Dr. E.J. Soik, a dentist, and Harry C. Growen, a Hamilton Co. bookkeeper, in 1896. The cabinets were made by Hamilton Co., a furniture maker. The name “American Cabinet Company” is being used by a different company today and is not related to the company that made dental cabinets. The sterilizer is not as collectible and is of low value, but some instruments sell for more than $100 apiece.

Q. Should vintage clothing or linens be washed in soap or detergent? I’ve heard that you can use Fels-Naptha to remove stains.

A. Detergents were invented in the 1940s, but people still like to use soap for vintage textiles because detergents include chemicals and other synthetic ingredients. Soap is made of natural materials, including oil and lye or another alkaline solution, but it can leave scum in hard water and can cause a fabric to become gray or yellowish if not completely rinsed. Lazarus Fels, founder of Fels and Co., began making soap in 1861. Fels-Naptha was introduced in 1893 when naptha, a solvent, was added to the formula. It can be used to remove stains made by chocolate, grass, makeup, perspiration, oil or grease. There are some other uses for Fels-Naptha. If you step into a patch of poison ivy, wash your clothes with Fels-Naptha to get rid of the poisonous residue. Some users claim it also can be used to get rid of aphids on plants, fleas and ticks on dogs and worms on trees.

Q. I have a menu from the SS President Coolidge’s last voyage as a luxury liner in October 1941. My grandparents received the menu from friends who were on that voyage. The Coolidge was then converted to a troop transport, and sank in 1942. The menu is in a frame. Are there collectors of this type of item, and does it have value?

A. Ocean-liner menus are popular collectibles, and many passengers kept a menu as a souvenir of their voyage. Your menu is interesting because it is from the ship’s last commercial trip and also because the ship sank during World War II. SS President Coolidge was a luxury liner that was part of the American President Lines. It was launched in February 1931. After Pearl Harbor, the ship was converted to a troop ship and painted gunmetal gray. The ship sank Oct. 26, 1942, after it ran into two mines entering the harbor at Espiritu Santo, a Pacific island. The troops abandoned ship, and all but two of the 5,000 men on board got off safely. Ocean-liner menus sell for $5 to $50. The historic interest of your menu would give it added value.

Q. I saw a vase made by Ferock listed in an auction. Can you tell me something about the maker?

A. Pottery stamped “Ferock” was made by Frank Ferrell (sometimes spelled Ferrel), who had a studio in Zanesville, Ohio, in the early 20th century. He used clay from the North Dakota School of Mines. Ferrell worked as a designer and modeler for several Zanesville potteries, including Weller (1897-1905), J.B. Owens, Peters and Reed, and Roseville. He was art director at Roseville from 1918 to 1954. During that period, he designed all of its lines, including “Ferella,” a line named after him.

Tip

Sniff your old photograph album. If it smells, it probably is made of vinyl or some other material that can harm photos. Don’t use it. Buy a new album.

Terry Kovel answers as many questions as possible through the column. By sending a letter with a question, you give full permission for use in the column or any other Kovel forum. Names, addresses or email addresses will not be published. We cannot guarantee the return of any photograph, but if a stamped envelope is included, we will try. The volume of mail makes personal answers or appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, The Vindicator, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019. For more information, visit Kovels.com.

2011 by Cowles Syndicate Inc.