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Watch Fob from School Yard

G

gitterdug

Member
I went out detecting on Saturday at a Fort Worth Texas elementary school where I went as a child. I have not ever hunted this school. For that matter, I have not hunted a school in years and years (15 or so).

Anyway, they had dug a pathway for a sidewalk, taking about 4 inches of dirt on what used to be a playground. This whole area also used to be a WW I camp (Camp Bowie). Just around the corner was also a world class hotel back in the 1800's.

So, I had the etrac set up, ferrous, 2 tone, 4 tone, conductive, wide open, closed up, just experimenting with each signal. I dug 9 wheat pennies, and a bunch of junk. I won't bother with those pics. I thought for sure that I would be getting some silver out of the path, and when I got a 12/46, larger signal, I thought......there she is!......well, no silver, but a really cool watch fob came out of the hole.

It says "CIRCLE A GINGER ALE" on one side, and "IT'S A GENTLEMAN'S BEVERAGE" on the other side. It has 2 ginger ale bottles with words on them as well. I came home at the end of my hunt, and placed the fob in hot hydrogen peroxide, and then took these photos. I have tumbled it as well, and it is much purtier now! This has to be my favorite fob ever, and I have found a bunch of them over the years.

I researched the Circle A Ginger Ale, and found that it was owned by the guy who bought the original recipe for Dr. Pepper, and bottled it at the same company as the Ginger Ale. The Circle A Ginger Ale existed from about 1884 to about 1915 as nearly as I can determine. Here is a link explaining the connection between Circle A Ginger Ale and Dr Pepper.....

http://tinyurl.com/3x745lq

I can't find much about it, so if any of you have information, please share. No idea what it might be worth, but to me, it is better than a silver coin, well except perhaps a key date of two......

HH

Dennis
 
Very cool find. I have seen a lot of watch fobs in my years of collecting tokens and medals and this is the first time I've seen this fob. Much better find than non-key date silver coins. Way to go and HH.
 
Nice fob with a cool history to boot!
What do you use for tumbling media?

HH, Crispy
 
Great story and awesome find Dennis! I started school at Webb Elementary school in McKinney, Tx. I believe it was in 1976. I understand McKinney and Dallas are about united now...

Congratulations and thanks for the pictures. That is a cool fob!

NebTrac
 
that fob is cool thanks for showin
 
Regarding the medium I use, it depends on the item. For this particular find, I used rubber coated aquarium rocks, dawn dish soap, and I WATCHED EVERY 30 MINUTES to insure I didn't hurt it. They were a fresh group of rubber rocks, because the rubber will wear off of them. I also used a lot of water in the tumbler to make the process less impacting......few rocks, maybe about 1/4 full in my cannister, and water about 3/4 full. I will post some "after" pics today or tomorrow, so you can see the difference. I really like the bottles on this fob, as they are very 3 dimensional.

HH

Dennis
 
Because of the uniqueness of the fob, I contacted the secretary of the Dr Pepper Collectors Club, who is also an expert on memorabilia for Dr Pepper. He confirmed that Circle A Ginger Ale Mfg is the original Dr Pepper company, and placed a date on the fob to be about 1900.

I sent him the photos shown, and he rated the fob a 6+ on quality, and I asked for a value range. He stated the following:

Dennis,
Condition is the value determination. From a scale of 1 to 10, I would value a 9 or 10 at auction to be $300 to $400 depending on the who is present to buy.
Grade 6-8 would be $200-$275. Values less the 5 would be $100 to $200.

This is only an estimate based on past performance. As you know if you get two bidders that want the item, the estimates go out the door. If you only have one bidder and bidders with lesser interest the values could not reach the numbers I have given you.

Good luck, and if you ever decide to sell, let me know. I know some collectors that would like to add to their collection.

Thanks, Charles

End Quote

That is what I LOVE about this hobby.....treasure takes many forms.....the fob may be headed to ebay after the next M. D. club meeting........ or not.....LOL

HH

Dennis
 
kuletule said:
Regarding the medium I use, it depends on the item. For this particular find, I used rubber coated aquarium rocks, dawn dish soap, and I WATCHED EVERY 30 MINUTES to insure I didn't hurt it. They were a fresh group of rubber rocks, because the rubber will wear off of them. I also used a lot of water in the tumbler to make the process less impacting......few rocks, maybe about 1/4 full in my cannister, and water about 3/4 full. I will post some "after" pics today or tomorrow, so you can see the difference. I really like the bottles on this fob, as they are very 3 dimensional.

HH

Dennis
Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing your tumbling techniques Dennis.
HH, Crispy
 
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