Even as a young boy, Harold Blau was a collector. He grew up very poor in a walk-up apartment in Brooklyn, New York. On trash day, he would wander through the local streets looking for interesting things that he could pick up and trade for “tickets” (baseball cards).

Some people call me a “pack rat”, but my wife and I prefer to describe ourselves as collectors. I have been this way since childhood — in fact I grew up in a family of collectors. My wife, Tammy, acquired the gene on her own and it has made for a perfect partnership. Mainly we want to preserve old stuff! Being surrounded by old stuff is comforting, and brings back fond memories of visits to our grandparents. Even though their old things were family objects and useful everyday items, we found them fascinating.

In the book Coin Banks by Banthrico, authored by longtime SBCCA member Jim Redwine (deceased), there are two Sleeping Santa banks made of different materials than the two metal examples featured in a previous Penny Bank Post article. One bank is made of chalk, also referred to as “Banthrico Plaster,” and the other later version is made of vinyl.

Ober Manufacturing Company produced a series of cast iron still banks in the early 20th century that are desired by collectors today. The company had a rich history of nearly one hundred years involving wood and cast iron products, as well as turning lathes and other machinery.

Our first article on the United Bank, Moore #1100, was published in the April, 2001 issue of the Penny Bank Post.

Late one Tuesday afternoon after a marathon session of pickleball, I was dozing off in my recliner when the phone rang. It was Dave and Toni Crosby calling from Des Moines, Iowa. Toni had discovered a fabulous bank that was being auctioned off the next day by Horst Auctioneers of Ephrata, Pennsylvania.

I just recently purchased a Railroad Signal Tin Bank made by Distler in Nuremburg, Germany in 1930.

Below are two photos of a cast iron clock bank that I have not seen before.

There were many souvenirs from the Columbian World’s Fair Exposition in Chicago in 1893, including many still and mechanical banks.

A war symbol becomes a money box! The Pickelhaube is a helmet with a spike used in the military. The spike originated from the idea of improved protection against sabre cuts and was intended to deflect blows to the head.