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Treasure Hunters Dig Into Collections At Holiday Inn

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By TONY HOLT

Hernando Today

Published: June 21, 2008

SPRING HILL - Carolyn Bloom and her sister had to use a luggage cart.

They were seeking the dollar value of all their old coins - along with some decades-old toys, dolls, comic books and a 1940s-era rotary phone.

Bloom spent several minutes pulling boxes off the cart and sorting through the contents. She had spread several of her coins across the table in front of her.

She had piles upon piles of sentimental items that could be traced to her and her sister's childhood. They were asked whether it would be difficult to part with them.

"We needed the money," said Bloom's sister, Maryann Ralston.

The Treasure Hunters Roadshow made its way to the Holiday Inn Express in Spring Hill this week. It began Tuesday and continues today.
Treasure Hunters employees can determine the worth of most collectible items. It is up to the customer whether he or she will part with it based on the value.

The buyers are available in the hotel's banquet room from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. More than 40 people were being served or were waiting in the nearby lounge area Thursday afternoon. Some had boxes. Others had bags.

One man came in with a truckload of items, said one observer who was impatiently waiting in line.
Jim Hickman oversees all of the shows for the Southeast. He recalled an encounter four weeks ago with a Gainesville man who had more than 3,000 Indian head pennies, the largest stash Hickman had ever seen one person collect.

The pennies were dated prior to or during the Civil War.

"I'd never seen a hoard of Indian head pennies like that," Hickman said. "I couldn't turn that down."

The company's appraisers were offering value estimates on a variety of objects Thursday - from jewelry and dishware to rifles and swords.

The value of what comes before Hickman is mostly known off the top of his head. Sometimes, he and the others have to do research online or call some of the Treasure Hunter leaders in Illinois.

Sometimes, some of their best-known international collectors will know the value. Appraisers call them as a last resort.

Hickman and his crew have cell phones, laptops and Web cams at their disposal.

"I love it," said Hickman, who lives in Parrish. "I just eat this up."
Treasure Hunters began in the mid-1990s selling toys. It made megabucks auctioning old G.I. Joe dolls, model racecars and 50-year-old wind-up toys made of tin. Japanese businessmen, in particular, were buying them by the crate.

Then eBay came along. In order to survive, Treasure Hunters had to expand. In a few short years, the company established a long list of loyal collectors. Word of mouth has been the reason for the company's continued growth, Hickman said.

J.A. Adams of Holiday was hoping to get $2,200 for a flintlock rifle manufactured in 1810. His grandfather passed it on to his father who passed it on to him. It has not been fired in more than 35 years.

"It's been in my family since I can remember," Adams said. "I'm not going to let it go unless I get what I want for it."

He said he thought the rifle's value was in the $1,700 to $2,700 range. He walked away Thursday with a check for $1,500.

Among the most popular items sold at a Treasure Hunters event are coins, gold, silver, pocket watches, clocks, musical instruments and advertising memorabilia.

The Holiday Inn is at 35228 Commercial Way, south of Forest Oaks Boulevard. For information, call (217) 416-4299.

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