Peerless
Antique Electric Fan
12" Oscillator Desk Fan
Antique Electric Fan Specs
| |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Peerless |
| Model | 230626 |
| Size | 12" |
| Housing | Steel |
| Cage | Steel |
| Blade | Brass |
| Wings | 4 |
| Speeds | 3 |
| Switch | Sliding |
| Mode | Oscillating |
| Type | Desk |
| Year | 1920s |
Without the AFCA I'd be Peerless!
June 2018 - I had been stalking the estate sales online for a couple months without so much as a flicker of interest. Oh, there were fans, just not fans that sparked my interest. I will admit that I am picky with my tastes. I don't collect fans just to hoard them, and I try not to duplicate any in my meager collection. I am a G.E. girl at heart, but I do wander from time to time. This was one of those wandering times.After searching the estate ads, there it was ─ almost a needle in a haystack. A wire mount Jandus that probably dated to 1915 and it was at a sale in Matteson, IL. Matteson is just southwest of Chicago. It was about a 2 1/2 hour drive from my house to this particular estate sale. I decided to take the day off of work to pursue this opportunity. I wasn't looking forward to getting up at 4 a.m. to make the drive, but I thought this fan was worth the effort.
I arrived at the sale around 7 a.m. and there were already about ten cars lining the street. The lawn and shrubbery looked long and unkempt, the gutters were overflowing with helicopter Maple seeds. I wondered how long it was since someone occupied the house. I stood outside and tried to get my name on the list of customers, but the estate company was wildly unorganized. They had misplaced the original list of names and were trying to create a new one but they couldn't find a pen to write the names. On top of that, the estate company employee admitted that she was not a morning person and super cranky without any coffee, so she shall now be named Ms. Cranky-Pants. It seemed like she should consider changing jobs to something in the evening hours.
I waited in line outside and talked with a few people about how far they had traveled to get to the sale. Ms. Cranky-Pants came out and said that the house was so small and only 12 people would be allowed in at one time. If anyone wanted to know where something was located in the house, she would tell you privately. I inquired about the fan and she told me to follow and particular path and the fan "wasn't cheap".
I know that on the first day of estate sales the prices are at their maximum. I also know that if you want something, you have to go early. This sale was cash or check only. I had a couple hundred tucked in my front pocket, and I could always make up the difference in price with my checkbook. I was ready. Ms. Cranky-Pants was having people line up so they could be let into the sale according to the list. The two men in front of me in line lied about their names to try to gain earlier entrance to the sale. I wasn't about to stand for that and spoke up against their deception. Ms. Cranky-Pants wasn't having it either, and she reduced the number of people that would be let into the house first. Score one for Ms. Cranky-Pants!
The first wave of people were let into the house and I waited anxiously outside, wondering if anyone was even looking at the fan. I was trying not to beat myself up for not arriving 20 minutes earlier just to be a little higher on the list. At least I would have been in front of the deceitful duo.
Finally I was let into the sale and navigated the stagnant, dusty home. The fan was exactly where the Ms. Cranky-Pants described and no other customers were even considering it. I walked up to it and there were white, square stickers on the blades. One proclaimed that it worked, and the other said $600. My heart sank. I was prepared for a high price, but this seemed unrealistic. I took a few pictures and I sent them to my fan-lifelines. I messaged Brett via Facebook, and I called Geo. While I was waiting for their feedback I carried this fan around with me for 45 minutes - no small feat as it was a heavy sucker. It felt awkward, but I wasn't ready to say no to the fan without some more knowledge for this decision. I set the fan down and a picker leaned over my shoulder and said, "too bad it isn't a side-winder". I gave him a slight smile and he went on to explain what a side-winder was; I already knew what a side-winder was but I didn't have the energy to dedicate to this man.
Brett and Geo responded quickly and both of them asked the same question ─ how did I feet about the price? It seemed like such a simple question, but it really didn't occur to me because I was busy looking at the object, not the experience. I liked the fan but my gut told me the price was high. They had both agreed, but they were respectful enough to let me come to my own conclusion.
I placed the Jandus back on the table and walked around the sale for another 20 minutes. By this point, most of the crowd had faded and I wandered the sale, nearly alone. I picked up a trivet that had a fan-shaped center that was priced as $2. I took it to the check-out and Ms. Cranky-Pants commented on my Rockford, IL shirt. She asked if I came all the way from Rockford for the Jandus fan. I replied that I had and she felt bad because I had driven all that way and was leaving without the Jandus. She said she had two offers for the it and I had to beat their prices. I heard the prices, thanked her for the opportunity, and I walked away. Sometimes it is good for the soul to walk away from a deal that doesn't sit right in your heart.
I looked up the other estate sale that had a couple dark pictures of fans, and headed out for Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin was an hour and thirty minutes away. It was time to enjoy my day off of work and hit the open road! It was past 10 a.m. when I arrived to the second sale, and the street was still lined with cars.
I walked in and asked an apron-wearing man where the fans were as I showed him the estate picture on my phone. He said the fans sold right away that morning, but they had been on the back screened porch. I meandered through the garage and wanted to see where the fans has spent their last minutes on this property. As I turned the corner, there it was ─ a brass blade fan! The Peerless hadn't sold in the morning rush! It sat alone on the floor of the screened porch, left behind as the newer neighboring Vornado was already sold. The cord was beyond tattered on the Peerless and I am certain many people didn't give the poor fan a second look because of it.
The price was very modest on the Peerless, but I didn't know much about this manufacturer. I knew that this wasn't the more desirable front oscillator or tab foot, but that didn't matter to me. I liked the simplicity of the cage and the bulky industrial look of the rear oscillation. I sent a couple pictures to Brett and bantered with him a bit as I headed to the check out desk.
The Peerless proudly posed for a few pictures in the trunk of my Ford Escape before she rode shotgun on the way home. The Peerless and I drove through the green countryside and I felt such a relief that I didn't drop $600 on a Jandus. I was thankful for my fan friends that I had made via the AFCA and that they are always willing to help a collector-in-crisis with a to-buy or not-to-buy situation. Sometimes I stray from G.E. but if it wasn't for my fan friends I would be Peerless ;)
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