Snapshots of History by Mike Avitt
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I am a phillumenist, that is, I collect matchbooks and matchboxes. I began collecting casually in 1974 and aggressively in 2002. It was in 2002 I joined Rathkamp Matchcover Society and learned how to collect, store, and display matchcovers. In phillumeny, the hobby of collecting matchcovers, it is common to remove the staple and combs of a matchbook leaving only the cover. This does three things: it eliminates the fire hazard, reduces the bulk, and allows the viewer to see both sides of a cover at the same time.
Collectors often have different preferences. Many collect the older and more rare covers, as do I, but I also seek covers with one, two, and three-digit phone numbers. I also collect by location whereas many phillumenists collect by topic or category, such as hotels or cafes. My primary categories are Iowa. Low phone numbers, and agriculture-related.
I recently made a trip to Washington, Iowa where my friend Fred Stark gifted me his life-long matchbook collection. I’d say there were about 3,000 matchbooks and matchboxes. Fred is a former Mount Ayr Junior High School and Elementary band director having been here from about 1964 to 1973. Fred and I are also railroad and history enthusiasts. An interesting note: Fred’s father Bill was a commercial logo designer and created the logos for International Harvester and Trans World Airlines (TWA) among others. Fred has other talents but let’s look at his former collection.
About 1,000 of the covers were what we call “nationals.” They advertise Holiday Inn, Perkins, or Hyatt Hotels, but do not have an address or price chart or any information of significance. These covers were mass produced and distributed nationally. Most of the remaining 2,000 covers were from Iowa or advertised Casey’s and Hy-Vee including duplicates and there were many duplicates. Other locations of abundance were Oshkosh, WI, where I believe Fred’s father lived, Chicago, Fred’s son’s residence, and Kansas City, Kansas, where I believe Fred’s daughter lives. There were covers from vacation spots like Las Vegas, New Orleans, and plenty from Washington, D. C.
This week’s picture shows five matchcovers from Fred’s collection. First, is my favorite from the collection, a feed store in Traer, Iowa advertising a phone number of 5. It is in pristine condition and these phone numbers are hard to find. It fits all three of my favorite categories. Next, we have Lynn’s Texaco in Mt. Ayr. Lynn’s Texaco was in operation from 1989 until December 2003. Lynn’s Sinclair operated from December 2003 until 2013.
The next matchcover is from Small’s Corral and just like Lynn’s, this same business had two different matchcovers. The minimum order for matchbooks is 50 boxes of 50, or 2,500. Sometime after the first order a change was made. The area code was added to the phone number and the words “THANKS FOR STOPPIN” appeared at the bottom of the cover. Because there are two different covers, we know at least two orders (or 5,000 matchbooks) were purchased. See how my brain works?
The next covers shows Hy-Vee celebrating their 50th anniversary in 1980. I chose to show this cover for two reasons. First, it is dated to 1980. Most covers are not dated so that is a treat to me. Second, this cover features Hy-Vee’s famous “Shopping Cart” logo. This logo was used by Hy-Vee from 1963 to about 1993 and I look for Hy-Vee advertising that is pre-1994. I collect other paper advertising such as printed napkins, business cards, ink blotters, calendars, and postcards.
The last cover advertises an Italian restaurant in Des Moines owned and operated by Ringgold County’s own Alyce (Reed) Mattis and her husband Ed. The restaurant was located at 207 Fourth Street in Des Moines or as I always say, “across the street from Java Joe’s.” Both businesses are gone now.
A friend of mine in the hobby calls matchcovers “history on paper.” And he’s right. Many matchbooks contain historical information such as the location of the enterprise, owner’s name, phone number (very important as area codes can give a location when the address is absent from the cover), products and services offered, prices, photographs, sketches of businesses, etc. History on paper. Thanks, Fred!
