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56 years and counting!

By Laura Knowles on July 3, 2018

You know you’re getting older when the toys you played with as a child are now antiques.

At the Lititz Historical Foundation’s 56th annual Antiques Show, there were lots of antique toys on display. It was a step back in time with dolls, whirligigs, dollhouses, carnival games, puppets and much more.

Held June 29 and 30 at Warwick Middle School, the show is a major fundraiser for the Lititz Museum and the 1792 Johannes Mueller House.

“These were very popular toys back in the late 1800s and early 1900s,” said Patti Guthrie, antique dealer from Chalfont, Pa. The toys that Guthrie was referring to were made of celluloid, a plant-based material that resembled early plastic. It was cheap and easy to work with, the perfect material to make toys, dresser sets and other items.

Dealer Patti Guthrie had countless pieces of celluloid toys for sale at the annual sale.

It did have a few major drawbacks that brought an end to its use after the 1940s. For one, celluloid was highly flammable. Many accidents occurred around the Christmas tree when children got too close to the fireplace or candles. Their cute toys would burst into flames, causing serious and even fatal injuries.

Celluloid was also very fragile.

“It would shatter into a million pieces, or break apart, or sometimes get crushed,” noted Guthrie.

That’s what made Guthrie’s collection of hundreds of celluloid items so unique. Very few pieces have survived since the early part of the 20th century. Guthrie had all sorts of toys, like Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Kewpie dolls, sailors, mermaids, brides and grooms, kittens, puppies, rabbits, farms animals, elves, Santas and just about everything you could think of. As Guthrie explained, celluloid was a trade name for a material meant to replicate expensive ivory. It was made of cellulose dinitrate that was blended with pigments, fillers, camphor, and alcohol to make a unique synthetic material categorized as a plastic. Celluloid deteriorate over time. It was used for toys, knife handles, holiday decorations, razors, hair ornaments, dresser sets and other items.

Guthrie has one of the largest collections of celluloid around, and she has to handle every piece with kid gloves.

“It’s not easy to keep these pieces perfect. I have had my share of accidents, like dropping one down stairs and watching it break apart. And never, ever get it near heat. It will burst into flames,” said Guthrie.

Dealer Sandy Elliott of Brentwood, New Hampshire knows how difficult it can be to preserve the quality of fragile playthings. She collects textile and paper goods, like old-fashioned doll dresses and children’s books. As she explains, you have to be careful to not allow these items to get wet, get exposed to extreme heat or cold, or store them where bugs can get to them.

Even stuffed toys, like velveteen rabbits, sheep, and squirrels, need to be cared for to keep them from disintegrating over time. For Peggy and John Bartley of Old Farm Antiques in Fleetwood Pennsylvania, samplers stitched by children, fabric dolls, cardboard-based games and sheepskin holsters for tiny guns, required TLC to preserve them.

Lynne Little of Littlestown in York County likes collecting “little” things, like dollhouses, miniatures, puppets and quirky antiques that are one-of-a-kind. One of her favorite pieces is a handmade dollhouse that was made in the 1800s.

Lynne Little of York County had many “little” things for sale like dollhouses, miniatures, puppets, and quirky antiques.

“I’m a fourth generation antiques dealer, and most appropriately, I like little things and miniatures,” said the petite Little, as she showed another original mini-farm set with a tiny barn, farm animals and farm tools.

Ruth Peckmann of Chestnut Hill, Pa., was another fan of tiny things. She had a collection of miniatures like horses, cows, wheelbarrows, geese, chickens, sheep, and farmers.

“I really like this horse with a circus performer,” said Peckmann, pointing out the metal white and black horse with a blonde haired circus performer wearing a red tutu and long white gloves. For those attending the show, it was a chance to step back in time to see the items that were once a part of everyday life. It’s one of the longest running antiques shows in the east, and was established in 1962. With over 50 dealers from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, Ohio, South Carolina, and Alabama, there were farm tools, stoneware, kitchen goods, textiles, early lighting, transfer ware, coins, silver, holiday items, Pennsylvania folk art, furniture and much more.

Laura Knowles is a freelance feature writer and regular contributor to the pages of the Record Express. She welcomes feedback and story tips at lknowles21@gmail.com.

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