BRICK – About a dozen members of the Brick Historical Society participated in “Collector’s Night,” which featured collections of items that ranged from the traditional to whimsical, such as Lucille Madigan’s treasured items from the 1964 World’s Fair.
“When I was 11, I went with my school, and my mother gave me 50 cents for a souvenir,” Madigan recalled. “All I could get was a comb, but over the years I found some other items, and it’s mushroomed.”
As an avid antiquer, she said not one of her items was purchased online, but were discovered in yard sales and garage sales.
The comb cracked years ago and is not part of the collection, but Madigan has amassed dozens of items ranging from glasses, plates, trays, a salt and pepper shaker, and her most prized item which is a plastic unisphere savings bank in its original box. The item is rare since most of the plastic items have cracked over the years, she said.
One of the most sentimental collections on display, and also the most patriotic, was Thomas Kozlowski’s military collection featuring family memorabilia from his late father, who served in the Army in World War II, his late older brother, who was a colonel in the Air Force, and his own items, collected during his 20 years in the Army.
“I have much more at home – probably four tables worth,” Kozlowski said.
Some of his unique items include greeting cards sent to the soldiers during World War II, uniform pieces, military medals of honor, hundreds of photos, newspaper clippings and much more.
It was a family affair for husband and wife, Charlie and Maryann Lawton, who brought separate collections for the display.
Charlie is a music fan and has attended thousands of concerts, and had just returned from a “Cruise to the Edge” voyage that he takes every year. The cruise featured some 30 bands and performers.
He had many of his past concert ticket stubs on display, along with programs and other concert memorabilia, including T-shirts, which he said have become collector’s items.
Lawton said he saw Frank Sinatra in concert twice, the original performance of The Wall by Pink Floyd, and Live Aid at the JFK Stadium in Pennsylvania.
His wife, Maryann, was at the table next to him. She said she has been collecting sports memorabilia for 65 years, which includes bobbleheads, baseball albums, and her most treasured item – replicas of the 27 World Series rings won by the Yankees.
I’m a super sports fan – I went to all the games to buy all this stuff, and it’s just a fraction of what I have,” Lawton said.
Joseph Brower was another sports fan, but his sport is boxing, evidenced by about two dozen autographed and personalized photos of boxers on his table.
His collection was organized by heavyweight champions, followed by light heavyweights, middle heavyweights, welterweights and lightweights, he said.
“Some of them I met in person at appearances, like at car shows, or at the Brick VFW at an amateur boxing program,” Brower said.
Three of his most prized photos are of Jack Dempsey, Muhammad Ali and Roberto Duran, who he met at the Larry Holmes Training Center in Easton, PA.
Peggy Osborn brought photos of the family home, built in the late 1700s. The house had to be moved 100 feet when they curbed Herbertsville Road, for which Osborn has a photo diary. Along with photos of the house over the years, she had a Service Flag at her table that hung in the window while her father-in-law served during World War II.
The house is a previous recipient of the Historic Preservation Commission, signifying the integrity of the property’s original design.
Peggy Voss also brought a whimsical collection to Collector’s Night: unique Coca-Cola memorabilia. She had mugs, a toothpick dispenser, Coke glasses, magnets, placemats and even five full bottles of the beverage that was part of a 1996 Olympic commemorative six-pack.
“It’s actually my 51-year-old daughter’s collection, but it was in my basement, so I brought it tonight,” Voss said.
Other collections of note included a camera collection brought by Donald Masucci, some of which were almost 100 years old, and two extensive coin collections, also known as the “King of Hobbies.”
