Residents bring items to Tarentum antique store hoping to find treasure
Allegheny Township residents Robert and Elaine Bargerstock knew the items they brought into an antique appraisal event Sunday were worth a lot in sentiment, but they had no idea how much they would be worth in dollars.
The photos feature Robert Bargerstock’s grandfather, who was an Allegheny Ludlum worker during World War II.
He was part of a poster made by the government that depicted an Army soldier and a sailor with a factory worker and had the phrase “Men Working Together” on it.
Bargerstock said it was to show U.S. soldiers around the word that the men back home were supporting the war effort, too.
“They were at home making the steel for the tanks and the jeeps,” he said.
Jeff Poole was doing the appraisals Sunday at Diamond Antiques and Gifts in Tarentum. Poole said it was worth at least $2,500.
“You not only have this was made in Pittsburgh, but you have the entire archive of how it was made and why it was made,” said Poole, who owns On the Diamond Antiques in Ligonier. “These photographs, themselves, are just kind of fascinating.”
The event drew dozens of people to the store. Often there was a line of people waiting to have their family heirlooms and yard sale treasures appraised, hoping to hear they may be worth thousands.
Dianna Roney, Diamond Antiques owner, said she likes to offer the appraisal events as another way to serve her customers.
“It’s just a lot of fun to see what everyone has,” she said.
The antique store has been at its Sixth Avenue location for 13 years. The two-story store features 23 antique dealers.
“It’s a good set-up,” she said.
Rita Greco of New Kensington brought in a vase that has been in her family for decades.
Poole estimated it to be made around 1895 and worth between $250 and $275.
“I knew it was probably worth something,” Greco said.
Diane Anderson of North Huntingdon brought in two decorative glass pieces that would go on the wall above a piano and a buffet.
“It was in my grandparent’s house,” she said. “They were in the attic for many, many, many years.”
They were made around 1925 they were estimated to be worth about $50 each.
“I really thought the glass would be a little more,” she said.
Poole said the price of antiques fluctuates a lot based on the demand and what the current generation is looking for.
He said the millennial generation is interested in Victorian items and other unique pieces that are different from what their peers or parents may have in their homes.
“Things were worth 10 times what they are now 30 years ago, but that doesn’t mean that things aren’t still selling,” he said. “Interesting and unusual things are still selling rather well, and pretty things tend to sell well.”
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.