"It Belongs in a Musem"

Finding things to sell is what we do, whether you call what we do a hobby or a business.  And what we try to do is buy things at a low enough price that we can sell it for a profit.  Most of what we buy ends up in the store for sale and some (too much?) ends up in one of our own collections.  But sometimes we find something "that belongs in a museum", to take a phrase from Indiana Jones.

We are located in Anoka County so I am partial to the Anoka County Historical Society (ACHS) and am always on the lookout for items they might want for their collections.  It should pertain to Anoka County and tell a story.  For instance, I found a hat at a thrift store that I thought I could sell for a bit of a profit, but after giving it some thought I asked the ACHS if they would be interested in it.  They gave a resounding "yes".

The hat is a fireman's dress hat from the 60s or 70s with a badge identifying it as both Federal Cartridge Corp. and Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP).  Federal Cartridge is a major Anoka industry that started back in the 1920's and was the Operating Prime Contractor for TCAAP, constructed in the early 40s to make ammo for our troops in WWII.  So the hat represents an important Anoka industry with roots in early part of the 20th Century and also represents Anoka's involvement in the WWII effort.

I made no money when I donated the hat, but it "belonged in a museum".