Category Archives: Road Trip

2014 Road Trip Blog: Scrappy the GI Mascot and Other WWII Collectibles

World War II home front collectibles have become a growing interest for Jim and me, so we were very happy to add a few new items to our collection during the course of our road trip. Pictured is a grouping … Continue reading

Posted in 1940's, Americana, Carol, Comic Characters, Historical, Humor, Road Trip, Weird, WWII | Leave a comment

For the Love of Christmas Pixies!

It is now December, which means it is time to break out the decorations and make it look like Christmas threw up in our house!  We at the Collector Gene all love Christmas, and want to take some time this … Continue reading

Posted in 1950's, 1960's, 2010's, Amy, Christmas, Dolls, Hand Made, Holiday, Humor, Road Trip, Toys | 19 Comments

Truman Political Cartoon – It’s Toon Time at the L.A. Times

Since we last gave attention to Dwight Eisenhower, a Republican, it seems only fair that while the election season is still only a few weeks behind us, we pay some attention to his Democratic predecessor – Harry S. Truman. It … Continue reading

Posted in 1950's, Americana, Historical, Jim, Political, Road Trip | 2 Comments

Last Travel-Log from the Road – 10/4/12: Antique Archeology-Nashville Submitted by Carol

When we set out on our cross-country journey at the beginning of September, we knew we wanted to antique our way across America, but we weren’t exactly sure where we would go.  We still have a few more days on … Continue reading

Posted in 1910's, 1920's, 1930's, 1940's, 1950's, Advertising, Americana, Art, Carol, Costumes, Ephemera, Hand Made, Historical, Humor, Jim, Lighting, Road Trip, Signs, Toys, Vehicular, Weird | Leave a comment

Travel-Log #8: Broad Summary (Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, Oklahoma, Arkansas) – Submitted by Carol on 10/3/12

Despite good intentions, I’ve discovered that keeping up on a blog while traveling the width of the country is no easy task.  Whenever possible, we’ve tracked down and run into antique shops and malls in pursuit of a “find.”  In … Continue reading

Posted in 1800's, 1900's, 1910's, 1920's, 1930's, 1940's, 1950's, Advertising, Americana, Carol, Dolls, Ephemera, Historical, Holiday, Humor, Jim, Kitchen, Monsters, Political, Road Trip, Signs, Toys, Weird | 1 Comment

Travel-Log #5: Now and Then Second Hand Store – Orange, CA 9/26/12 Submitted by Carol

As promised earlier, we are leap-frogging over several successful forays into antique shops earlier in the trip to report on another shop connected to a popular TV show. Heading out on this trip, we knew we wanted to re-visit Orange, … Continue reading

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Travel-Log #4: Abilene, Kansas 9/12/12 Submitted by Carol

Note:  Our apologies for the lack of Travel-Logs during the past two weeks.  It’s not that we haven’t been antiquing; we have.  However, between very busy days on the road and sometimes very poor wi-fi connections at our motels in … Continue reading

Posted in 1800's, 1900's, 1910's, Advertising, Americana, Carol, Cast Iron, Glass, Historical, Jim, Kitchen, Road Trip | 1 Comment

Travel-Log #3: Platte City, Missouri – 9/9/12 Submitted by Carol

After several hours of soaking up history in St. Joseph, Missouri and Atchison, Kansas (Pony Express Museum, Patee House, the house where Jesse James was killed, and Amelia Earhart’s birthplace), we were heading south along the Missouri River toward Kansas … Continue reading

Posted in 1930's, 1940's, Americana, Carol, Disney, Ephemera, Historical, Jim, Political, Road Trip, Toys, WWII | Leave a comment

Travel Log #2: LeClaire, Iowa 9/7/12 Reported by Carol

We entered LeClaire, Iowa, which is just north of Interstate 80 and on the banks of the Mississippi River, at about 9:45 a.m.  I was taking note of the price of gas at a BP station when Jim shouted, “There … Continue reading

Posted in 1920's, 1930's, 1950's, Advertising, Americana, Carol, Ephemera, Humor, Jim, Road Trip, Signs, Toys, Vehicular | Leave a comment

Travel Log #1: Galesburg, Il 9/6/12: Reported by Carol

We left home yesterday and headed west through Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana; thirteen hours and 681 miles later, we arrived in Brownsburg, Indiana.  What a frustration to watch billboards advertising antique malls flash by us on I-70!  The huge Heart … Continue reading

Posted in 1800's, 1920's, 1930's, Advertising, Americana, Carol, Historical, Jim, Pottery, Road Trip | Leave a comment