The Urban Archeologist: The Secret to finding Estate Sale Gold

I always have some level of expectation when I go digging for treasure, but it isn’t often that I can just know from the look of a sale that I will pull a real gem from out of the past.

It happened a few weeks ago. I had been to this home once before, and it was loaded with nostalgia. The owner had been a long-time collector of films, among other things. When I saw the basement full of old films, projectors and memorabilia, I had to cringe and show restraint to keep from buying the lot.

I let it go, knowing there would be another sale. I didn’t expect to see the film collection again, but I knew that given the age of the home there would be plenty of places to explore for forgotten treasure.

Now with many of the rooms cleaned out I was undaunted and began making a scan of the area for the unlikely places things might be hiding. In a home this old, I didn’t have to look for very long.

As I examined the rooms where the films had been I made an amazing discovery. Tacked to the wall was an old and dry business card (see image) belonging to Jack Haley Jr. when he was Executive Vice President of Wolper Productions.