Maybe Some Money is in South Dakota Too

After the Iowa fiasco I was sure that all the money was now in Iowa. Well I went to a farm auction in South Dakota and either Iowa is leaking or some of that money made it to SD too.

The auction was just north of Sioux Falls and just west of Pipestone, Minnesota. The farmers were out picking corn and combining beans on both sides of the route there. Lots of big equipment harvesting lots and lots of grain.

The house was a South Dakota farm "mansion". Built in 1901-2 by a very successful farmer for his family which consisted of 17 children. It had over 6000 square feet on 3 floors. The house has suffered over the years from neglect and disrepair. The house, to be moved or stripped, was one of the items on the auction bill.

The same family that built the house still owns it 110 years later and the auction bill promised that the 100 years of accumulated stuff would be available for sale. The stuff did not live up to the billing. It appears that the best stuff was sold off to pickers over the past 20 years or carried off by the family members in anticipation of the auction. (17 kids in 1900 can produce a great number of off spring in 100 years).

The house was interesting, but definitely not a mansion by Summit Avenue standards. The moving rights to the house were bid to $30K but did not sell. The stuff was interesting, but definitely not the untouched accumulation of more than 100 years in the same house. And the crowd was there to buy. Again, for the second time in a week, the prices were crazy buyer prices. I bought a few things, but nothing close to justifying the 380 mile trip.

My favorite item, I bid it to $2000 but did not buy it. Its a cast iron fountain with a crane center piece and a base that had frogs, turtles and other pond life cast into the edge.

This tufted leather fainting couch sold for $1950.

And the similar chair did $900.

The frames and pictures along the fence did way too much for me to even consider bidding.

The interior of the house had some nice woodwork, but nothing to swoon over. Looked like the Sears high end interior from 1900.

The metal cove moulding and original wall paper were nice.

And the fretwork between the parlors was very good.

The stick and ball decoration on the 6 gable ends was saleable.

The house was very long with dormitory like bedrooms lining the halls in the back half of the 2nd and 3rd floors.

I guess that I will add southeastern South Dakota to northern Iowa on my don't bother to drive that far for an auction list.

Mr. Flannery