Enjoy a nostalgic look back at Allentown, Pennsylvania, during its "Golden Age," from the late 1890s through the 1950s. During this period, Allentown's citizens left behind their frugal Pennsylvania German traditions to take on the social and cultural trappings of the twentieth century. Capitalizing on a labor force swelled by an influx of immigrants, local entrepreneurs created many new businesses and factories. As their fortunes and aspirations grew, these men built large mansions, hotels, and public parks. Amusement parks sprang up, theaters were built on Hamilton Street, and Allentown became an All-American city with an upscale future. Over 360 images of vintage postcards and memorabilia bring this exciting time in Allentown's history to life.

Dolls not only capture little girls' hearts, they've also managed to corner markets for mega-companies like W.K. Kellogg Company, Jolly Green Giant, and Campbell's. The author has scoured flea markets and auction houses and consumed cereals, candies, and innumerable hamburgers in order to compile one of the most complete collections of advertising dolls known to exist. This comprehensive book traces the emergence of dolls like Aunt Jemima and Betty Crocker, who leant their stamp of domestic credibility, and chronicles the extraordinary rise of figures like Ronald McDonald and the California Raisins, tiny figures which invaded homes and helped define American culture. Here is the nostalgic revisit of hundreds of advertising creations, like Uneeda Kid, Buddy Lee, Cracker Jack, Charlie Tuna, Burger King, and Trix the Rabbit. Each is shown with front and back details, and current values are listed providing the perfect reference tool for the collector.

Florida is always associated with all that is bright, colorful, funky, and fun. This book captures the spirit of Florida in the collectibles, ephemera, souvenirs, and nostalgic items that it produced. There are also highlights of Florida history and its culture, a price guide, and an index. Complete with postcards, tablecloths, ceramics, clothing, jewelry, dolls, figurines, and much more, it celebrates the tourist culture that helped populate Florida from the 1900s through the 1970s. Over 650 photographs bring the fun and fantasy of Florida to life, presenting what many consider as truly Florida's best!

In thousands of years of tilling the soil, we have created a great variety of garden tools to dig, cut scrub, harrow fields, and trim borders. What makes the tools unique, and collectible, is the way function has dictated form, resulting in not only ingenious shapes, but artistic ones. In the 19th and early 20th centuries garden tool catalogs listed hundreds of task-specific tools including dibbers, mattocks, potato hoes, onion hoes, daisy grubbers, claws, weeders, forcers, straighteners, garden row markers, garden reels, rakes, watering cans, water tanks, lawn mowers, lawn rollers, weed whackers, and many many more. This book looks back at two hundred years of garden history, and attempts to identify the tools and accessories that gardeners used, and as much as possible identify their specific functions. With over 750 color photographs, concise captions, and a guide to prices in today's antique marketplace, this is a useful as well as beautiful exploration of garden implements.

This book recreates the ambiance of the ocean liner era by showing the actual objects used on board. Each piece of ocean-liner memorabilia is like an Aladdin's lamp, releasing wondrous memories of that grand style of travel. Beginning in the late 1890s, shipping lines forged their identities by commissioning unique furniture, china, silverware, glassware, vases, ashtrays, playing cards, menus, and stationery. These types of items characterized the different ocean liners, from the Normandie with her elegant Art Deco furnishings, to the stainless steel gleam of the S.S. United States, to the old-world luxury of the Queens.

This book takes you through hundreds of beautiful garden landscapes lavish with ornaments. A great variety of marble and stone walkways, garden walls, tiered fountains, statuary, classical architectural ruins, birdbaths, sundials, urns, garden furnishings, and iron gates are found, tucked away amidst lush plantings, European palaces, Italian villas, country manor houses, and elegant estates. See gardens of Italy, Texas, New England, Pennsylvania, New York, South Carolina, and Florida that are a feast for the eyes. This book will sow seeds for many gorgeous gardens of the future.

Judaica embraces those objects associated with the celebration of and adherence to Jewish rituals. This book presents clear explanations and beautiful color pictures of candlesticks, boxes, plates cups, toys, and foods which celebrate Jewish traditions. These objects of creative design display, honor and rekindle the spirit of a 5000-year-old religion to reflect 20th-century modernism.

Since the turn of the century, the automobile has captured the imaginations not only of adults, but of children as well. As quickly as the new vehicles rolled off the assembly lines, foundries were making thousands of cast iron miniatures of the most popular automobiles, trucks, and farm equipment of the day. Today, rare and exquisite cast iron toys are coveted by collectors of all ages. This book presents a delightful, in-depth study of the marvelous products of leading American cast iron toy manufacturers, including Kenton, Dent, Hubley, Arcade, Kilgore, Vindex, and A. C. Williams, along with select pieces by Champion, Globe, Grey Iron, Freidag, North and Judd, and Niederst. This spectacular collection includes the best in toys, original catalog advertisements, signage, manufacturers' marks, and much more. Over 850 magnificent toys are displayed, including automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, tractors, farm and construction equipment, and aeronautics, each with detailed photographs, exacting captions, price guide, and historical data on the manufacturing companies. Toy collectors, cast iron aficionados, and dealers will welcome this most complete book.