Old West Antiques and Wells Fargo Antiques and Books For Sale

All of these items are 100% AUTHENTIC. CLICK on any photo for an ENLARGED view.
Wells, Fargo & Co.'s Express Messenger Twelve's Cap Badge & Seal Engraved "German silver" cap badges were issued by employee number to each Messenger in the 1880's. Therefore, the lower the number, the earlier the date of issue. No records are available that identify these messengers, but Messenger 12 was certainly one of the earliest! This Cap Badge is original! However, because this photo has been published, this Cap Badge has been *reproduced!* The A. G. Meier & Co. cap is pre-1918, size 7-1/4, but is NOT marked for Wells Fargo & Co. For more information on Cap Badges, Click here! Each Messenger was issued a numbered Seal for use in sealing bags and packages. It was issued for his exclusive use, and was not accessible to any other person. This Messenger's Seal is original! To our knowledge, it has NOT been reproduced! This seal was issued to Messenger Twelve, along with a Lock and Key, both of which bore the number 12. The whereabouts of Messenger Twelve's lock and key are unknown. In 1882, a Lead and Wire Sealer, bearing the number 12 was issued to him, but its whereabouts is unknown. Also unknown, is the whereabouts of Messenger Twelve's Coin Bag Sealer. For more information on Seals, Click here! This CAP BADGE and SEAL are PICTURED in the book, "Company Property . . .", Pages 24 & 121 !!! A signed complimentary copy of "Company Property . . ." will be included with the purchase of these items. To order a Signed Copy of "Company Property . . ." ONLY, Click Here! Each Messenger filled his Sealing Lamp with alcohol, lighted the wick, and melted the wax before applying his seal. This Sealing Lamp is typical of those used "on the road" by all messengers, but probably was NOT used by Messenger Twelve. This Sealing Lamp is NOT marked for Wells Fargo & Co. For more information, Click Here ! "Messenger Twelve," by James Lynn Bartz, is a 249-page fictional account of a slave trader, who is forced into insolvency when his slave ships fail to return. Tracking them down, he travels to San Francisco at the height of the Gold Rush, becoming entrapped in its frenzy and madness. Following the line of avaricious gold-seekers into the hills of the Sierra Nevadas, he stakes his claim, is attacked by assassins, loses his gold stake, and is forced to return from the hills. He is asked to become a delivery messenger with a young company, Well, Fargo & Co.'s Express. His new responsibilities place him on a path to face the assassins, and to protect his "Treasure Box," a young slave girl hidden in a wooden trunk. This copy is signed by the author. All four items: $4,000. Back To Top
Dale Robertson Funeral Program and Two Obituaries From 1957 to 1962, Dale Robertson starred as Jim Hardie in the television series, "Tales of Wells Fargo." Although the stories were fictional, most of the company artifacts used on the sets were authentic, and simply obtained from the studio "Props" Department. Many fans of this show became avid collectors of Wells Fargo relics because of Jim Hardie's adventures. In 1993, Dale Robertson generously provided a Foreword to the book, "Company Property of Wells, Fargo & Co.'s Express 1852-1918." Fondly, we remember Dale Robertson here, and we thank him for being with us. $200. To read a poem written by Dale Robertson, Click here! To see Dale Robertson, in the TV series, "Tales of Wells Fargo," Click here! Back To Top
Vegetable Crate Label This crate label is believed to be from the 1940's, and NOT pre-1918! *Wells Fargo & Co. of Arizona* was one of the few subsidiaries of Wells Fargo & Co. that was NOT merged into the American Railway Experess Co. in 1918. These subsidiaries continued to do business well into the 1960's, using the Company's original 1866 corporate charter. Vegetable crate labels, with or without this "Call Card logo," were used to advertise the shipments of produce that was grown in Arizona or Mexico. "Fargo Tomatoes" and "Selectos Mexican Peppers" are two other examples. This label measures 6" x 9". THIS IS THE LABEL THAT IS PICTURED in the book, "Company Property . . .", on Page 149 !!! To order this book, Click Here! $200. Back To Top
Scott Arden's Railroad, Telegraph, & Express Co. Sales Lists Over 160 ORIGINAL sales lists, from 1973 thru 1993, describing Dining Car China and Silver, Locks and Keys, Lamps and Lanterns, Depot Clocks, Telegraph Keys & Sounders, Advertising Signs and Drumheads, Wax Seals, and many Express Co. artifacts and relics. MOST years are complete, with 12 or more issues on legal-size colored-paper. Some years include fewer issues. Twenty-plus additional issues from 1972-73 are only black-and-white COPIES. For DETAILS about Scott Arden, Click here! $100. Back To Top
W F & Co Express Twenty-Five-Year Service Button Service Buttons were introduced in 1915 to recognize years of "Faithful Service" to the company. Using the "CALL CARD" design, all are basically the size of a U.S. dime, although the longer the service, the fancier the button. The 25-year buttons were fabricated and hallmarked "14K", and "C.A. Winship", at the "Masonic Temple" in "Chicago". A Gold Bezel can be purchased at a coin shop to convert the service button to an attractive piece of jewelry, perhaps a lady's necklace, or a gentleman's watch chain. Caveat: The Call Card disc separated from the base, and was repaired recently by a local jeweler. $500. A Five-Year Service Button -- $200: Another Five-Year Service Button -- This one for $150: And, a TEN-Year Service Button -- This one for $200: Back To Top
W F & Co Express 1914 Official Directory Directories were published as early as 1856. They listed the routes to destinations that were being served by the company. "Official" Directories, with soft covers, were published in 1914, 1915, and 1916. Directories are useful in determining the opening and closing of offices in various locations. THIS IS THE DIRECTORY THAT IS PICTURED in the book, "Company Property . . .", on Page 56 !!! For information on Directories, Click here! $2000. Back To Top
San Francisco Harbor Photo, c1875. Carleton E. Watkins probably stood on Telegraph Hill around 1865 and photographed this tranquil scene of three-masted ships in San Francisco's harbor. The steam-powered Oakland Ferry is seen, along with Yerba Buena Island. Watkins went bankrupt in 1875, and his studio was acquired by Isaiah West Taber, who continued the production of photographs and stereoviews. This photograph is most probably Taber's period print of a Watkins negative. Taber's studio was located at 8 Montgomery St., San Francisco, over the Hibernia Bank. His advertisement in the 1884 San Francisco Directory invited customers to "Ascend In Elevator." Apparently, Taber was doing quite well! This is an ORIGINAL photo in heavy card stock. "B 862 San Francisco Bay" and "Taber Photo San Francisco" identify this one of many scenes around San Francisco. The 1906 earthquake destroyed Taber's studio and all his work. However, this one survived! Measures 7-5/8"" by 9-3/8". $250. For information on company Photographs, Visit our Museum! Back To Top

All of these items are 100% AUTHENTIC. CLICK on any photo for an ENLARGED view.
Railway Express Agency Messenger's Kit Box, c1930. Kit boxes were used by express messengers from the early days of Wells Fargo. See the book, "Company Property . . .", page 139, and study the myriad items that were needed in the course of a day's business. By the 1930's, the size had diminished considerably, as seen here. No longer was space needed for a shot gun, a lantern, or oak rollers. Recently, one of these same kit boxes was mistaken for a treasure box (!) on one of the Pawn reality TV shows. Like-new condition, this was purchased years ago from a retired REA messenger. Some hardened sealing wax still remains in the bottom of the box. Measures 9-1/2" x 12" x 9" high. $750. For more information about Kit Boxes and Treasure Boxes, visit our Museum! Back To Top
Railroad Train Order Case. These wood and metal cases held the Train Order Blanks, which were interleaved with sheets of carbon paper. Each shelf was stacked with a specific number of blanks. The minimum stack was for four copies -- one each for the Dispatcher, Station Agent, Train Engineer, and Train Conductor. A Station Agent received train orders on the Telegraph Sounder. Then, he "typed" them out on the "Train Order Mill," which was an "all-caps" typewriter. This Train Order Case measures 9-1/2" high by 10-1/2" wide by 12-1/2" deep. These are seldom seen, but one is a "must" for a collector of railroad depot items. $150. We remember the Village Depot, and the depot at Bosky Dell. Back To Top
J.H. Bunnell Telegraph Sounder. These classic aluminum and brass telegraph sounders clicked away the hours in thousands of railroad depots and telegraph offices throughout the USA for decades. "N.Y.R.S. 2884 Inspected" is stamped on the bottom. Perfect working condition. Bunnell sounders are those most sought-after by railroad collectors. $100. Be sure and visit the Village Depot, and the depot at Bosky Dell. Back To Top
New Mexico & Nevada Place Names New Mexico Place Names, 1965, Edited by T. M. Pearce, 187 pages, Soft Cover. A hidden treasure lies within these pages and their cheap paper cover! In countless entriess, the details date back to the arrival of the Conquistadors! Hundreds of contributors participated in creating this magnificent book, which claims over "5,000 individual items." Spanish & Indian names, Railroads, dates, Belly Ache Mesa, Dead Man's Arroyo, and countless other items are fully narrated. Any serious aficionado of New Mexico history would be so enlightened by possessing this volume! Nevada Place Names, 1964, by Rufus Wood Leigh, 149 pages, Hard Cover. Places in Nevada are organized county-by-county, or by an Index, if you prefer. Eight black-and-white plates of various mountain scenes are included, courtesy of the Southern, Union, & Western Pacific Railroads. A Glossary gives the reader insight on the origin of names known to us all, like Arroyo, Mesa, and Pinto. A nostalgic view of a barren state, long before becoming a tourist goal and gambling mecca. Both for $100. View other Books and Media! Back To Top
OREGON EXPRESS COMPANIES. 1985, by Dale E. Forster, 231 pages, Hard Cover, Number 235 of 500. Forster gives a clear picture of the competition among the U.S. and other postal services, the telegraph companies, and the express companies. The narrative is divided into three periods, the early years between 1845 and 1855, the Western Oregon companies between 1855 and 1870, and the Eastern Oregon companies up to 1870. What is pleasantly surprising to the reader is the plethora of black-and-white photos of the postal covers, pictured on page after page throughout the book! The only other enormous repository of postal covers, of which we are aware, is the extensive archive of original covers owned and preserved by the Wells Fargo Bank in San Francisco! This book is required reading for any express company philatelic collector. $100. To view magnificent covers from the Earnest A. Wiltsee collection: Click here! View other Books and Media! Back To Top
LETTERS OF GOLD. 1984, by Jesse L. Coburn, 389 pages, Hard Cover. An excellent discussion of covers, Coburn traces the history of postal delivery all the way from Spain, the conquest of Mexico, and the conquest of California, and the Gold Rush. Eight pages of glorious color feature a select few of covers from an immense collection of black-and-white photos. A great companion volume to the Forster book! Coburn's discussion includes the United States, Panama and Hawaii! $100. To view magnificent covers from the Earnest A. Wiltsee collection: Click here! View other Books and Media! Back To Top

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