This is not the oldest check in my collection, but it is very interesting. A 1927 check from
A.J. Atran, seller of Studebaker and Star Automobiles. Atran called themselves the oldest Studebaker dealer (though there is some dispute), as they started selling horse-drawn carriage products for the company in 1889. The Atran garage not only outlasted the short-lived Star Automobile company, but it even outlasted Studebaker, staying in business through the 1970s. (The last Studebakers came out in 1966.)
Being a 1927 check, my first thought was to pair it with a 1927 Yankees card, but I thought that was too obvious. Instead, here is the youngest photo I could find of Joe DiMaggio, who would have been 12 years old in 1927, growing up in San Francisco. Arbuckle is a small town about 100 miles northeast of San Francisco. Who knows, maybe young Joe D took a ride in an Atran Studebaker at some point?
Cool item for sure!
ReplyDeleteOld checks are awesome collectibles. I've lived in California my entire life and had never heard of Arbuckle until today. But after looking it up on a map, it looks like I've driven through the town a few times on camping trips up to Manzanita Lake.
ReplyDeleteI started to collect backdrop signs of beer in stadiums. I've started a package for you next time I go to the post office.
ReplyDeleteVery cool! Too bad we don't know what the check was for.
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