The most popular holiday collectibles are related to Christmas. Many families buy a few tree ornaments each year and save them along with decorations from earlier years.
The first decorated Christmas tree in America was put up in Pennsylvania in 1747, but the idea was slow to catch on. It wasn't until 1832 that another group decorated a tree in Massachusetts. Early trees were decorated with natural items like popcorn, colored leaves or pine cones. But the 1830s tree was the start of the Christmas decorating custom that has grown into a huge business with garlands, ornaments, figurines, dishes and toys. Even food jars, candy bars and cans feature Santa and trees on special holiday labels.
The most expensive collectible Christmas items today are the older ones. There were dolls and figurines and even postcards in the 1800s. Santa Claus was thin and wore blue or orange clothing, and kugels — large, round, blown glass ornaments often covered in wax — were popular. In more recent times, ornaments are plastic, the tree lights are electric bulbs not candles, and by the 1950s, the trim was often made of strips of aluminum foil or spun glass.
This Santa with a donkey is a German pull toy made of painted composition material. The wooden platform is covered in mica. It sold a few years ago for $854 at auction.
Betty Lee doll
Q: Did they ever make a Betty Lee doll? I have one that looks like a boy and one with rosy cheeks and eyelashes that looks like a girl. I've been told a Betty Lee doll was never produced.
A: Buddy Lee dolls are an advertising doll made for the H.D. Lee Mercantile Co. of Kansas City, Mo. The boy doll was made from 1921 until 1962. They were made of composition until 1948 and hard plastic after that. The maker is unknown. "Betty Lee" is a name collectors gave the girl dolls. They are highly collectible and are often collected by Buddy Lee collectors, but they were not made for the H.D. Lee Co. The "Chubby Kid" doll, made by Gem Toy Co. from 1920 to 1931, is a girl doll that looks like Buddy Lee and may have been made by the same company. Buddy Lee dolls have been reproduced. Buddy Lee dolls are often dressed in company uniforms, and price depends on how popular the company is. A doll dressed in an Allis Chalmers uniform sold for $800, a railroad doll for only $220.
Write to: The Kovels, c/o King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019. The website is kovels.com.
current prices
Prices are from shows nationwide.
