Following a long…hot…summer, it is finally time for the fall season of Political Button and Americana Collector Conventions to begin. On September 15 – 17, collectors flocked to Indianapolis, Indiana for the 19^th annual A.P.I.C. Midwest Regional Political Collectors Show. Thursday and Friday saw room hopping in the rooms of both collectors and dealers in attendance, and Saturday featured an over 100 table bourse open to the public in the hotel ballroom.

Over the many years of writing for The American Antiquities Journal I have had many readers ask me to explain the mechanics of a show and what they should expect. Using terms such as "room hopping" "bourse" "Seattle Rules Auction" and others may tell the veteran collector the story, but to new collectors, terms like these may only cause confusion. So….here is a little primer on political collecting conventions, and what you as a new visitor might expect (Actually this isn’t a bad brush-up for those who will visit collector conventions of all types as many of the concepts are the same whether you are talking Ike buttons, model trains, coins or other collectibles).

A.P.I.C…is the American Political Items Collectors, a nation-wide club of collectors and Political Americana enthusiasts who network to enjoy their common goal of collecting and appreciating political memorabilia. More information and an application may be had by asking me through my contact information below.

Bourse…simply put, the bourse is the area where dealers will be set up to show off their wares. Convention floor, bourse and show areas are all the same thing.

Room Hopping…perhaps my favorite part of any collectors’ show. Room hopping is when attendees of a convention set-up their items for sale or trade in their sleeping rooms. Collectors and dealers alike will traverse the halls of the affected (infected?) hotel and visit rooms where the doors are propped open to see what’s available.

Most dealers/collectors will bring folding table, extra lights, display cases and more, and lay items on tables, beds and every square inch of a sleeping room, creating a little store front for a day or two. Die-hard shoppers will sometimes swear that they find more to buy during room hopping than at the bourse itself as they are seeking the "freshest" finds of the show.

Seattle Rules Auctions…this particular term is probably unique to political collecting and I assume that it originated at a political button show in Seattle, Washington many, many years ago. The general public is invited to bring their old campaign buttons and related collectibles to political shows to not only receive free appraisals, but to have the opportunity to have their items sold in on-the-spot auctions to the highest bidder as well. By offering their items through auction, an unknowledgeable seller can insure themselves that they will receive a fair price for his goodies, rather than taking the chance of accepting an offer that is too low from an individual dealer. Of course a commission is charged for this service, but there have been literally hundreds of success stories of someone arriving with "Dad’s old cigar box full of campaign buttons" only to leave with hundreds to thousands of dollars.

At a show a couple of years ago in the Midwest, a lady walked in with a pair of very rare 1920 Cox and Roosevelt picture buttons and walked out with almost $20,000. Most attic finds are going to be considerably less than five figures when all is said and done, but one never knows…

My best suggestion to a new collector or someone who has never attended a political collector’s convention is to arrive early and stay late! Take your time and shop the rooms and the bourse for what you really like. The same identical button can usually be found at many different prices during a show.

Of course the reverse is true as well. A local antique mall has a sign reading "The Time to Buy an Antique is When you See it!" I can’t count the number of times that I failed to jump on an item when I first saw it, only to find it sold upon returning with cash in hand. Pace yourself and don’t spend any more than your budget allows. Political collecting can be a very affordable hobby and extremely enjoyable with a little planning.

PHOTO CAPTIONS:
Top - A wide variety of buttons and items can be found at Political Collectors conventions. 
Bottom - Collectors and Dealers alike gather at the annual shows held around the country.

Michael J. McQuillen and his wife Polly are dealers and collectors of many antique and collectible areas specializing in political memorabilia, and reside in Central Indiana. Michael can be reached by writing him directly at: Michael J. McQuillen, P.O. Box 50022, Indianapolis, IN 46250-0022, or e-mail: michael@politicalparade.com or via his web-site: www.politicalparade.com