Crazy for My Collectibles

We all recall the image of Aunt Jemima on pancake mix boxes, you know, the smiling face of a African American mammy type woman who wore a hair-kerchief and apron and appeared so friendly and made you feel so comfortable purchasing the product from her smiling trustable face.

The commercial Mammy image we are familiar with today began as far back as 1889 by a man named Chris L. Rutt who was a business man from Missouri and sold a self-rising pancake mix and when he heard a song about “Aunt Jemima” from a vaudeville group of Baker and Farrell the idea of commercializing Aunt Jemima was born.

There were more than 40 women who portrayed Aunt Jemima for the pancake mix. Nancy Green was one of these women and she traveled with the R.L. Davis Company who bought the original Aunt Jemima pancake mix business form Chris L. Rutt until her death in 1923. Nancy was hired to serve pancakes at shows and exhibits promoting the pancake mix and it is said that in 1893 at an exhibit in Chicago over 1 million pancakes were served! In the early 1920s Quaker Oats purchased the company and brand from R. L. Davis along with the Aunt Jemima name and image and has been selling the pancake mix ever since. Quaker also trademarked “Aunt Jemima” in 1937. Edith Wilson was another long-time Aunt Jemima that was hired during the 1950s and portrayed the image for some 20 years.

The company’s’ that were selling the Aunt Jemima pancake mix had items created like pins, puzzles, dolls, salt and pepper shakers, and recipe books, sugar and creamer sets, six-piece spice jars with rack, and the mammy cookie jars. In 1949 a plastic syrup pitcher was available and was attached to the pancake box as a freebie to entice folks to purchase the product. Also, many of these products were available by filling out one of the coupon cards that came with your Aunt Jemima pancake mix purchase. There were even Aunt Jemima paper hats and Halloween masks that were advertising freebies.

Today, Aunt Jemima and Mammy Black Americana collectibles are becoming increasingly difficult to come by and these items from a by gone era are highly sought after by collectors. Below are some pricing values of what Aunt Jemima items are considered valued in today’s market and can be found in the book – Black Memorabilia for the Kitchen, by Jan Lindenberg (author) for Schiffer Publishing.

Aunt Jemima Oil Cloth Dolls – $500-$600 for set (Includes Aunt Jemima, Uncle Mose, Diana and Wade. Please check our products page for an available rare set!)

1950s Aunt Jemima & Uncle Mose Sugar and Creamer – $200-$400 (F & F Mold Co. Dayton, Ohio. Yellow, Greenish Yellow, Light Blue rare)

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St. Nicholas, Father Christmas, Father Frost, Kris Kringle, Pere Noel, Ded Moroz, and Santa Claus to name a few. He may have many different names but he is globally known and loved by all young, and old alike. Yes, he visits once a year, but for some, his presence is felt year-round.

Did you know there are many more Santa Claus collectors than snowmen or angel collectors! There is even a Santa Claus museum, one in Santa Claus, IN and a Santa Claus museum in Texas. The Texas Santa Claus museum has many rare and fragile Santa Claus figurines made from celluloid; a precursor to plastic material made between 1860s-1940s. This museum also has an extraordinary 1970s Santa made from Readers Digest magazines.

There are collectors of Santa figurines that keep their displays up all year-round, and why not, it certainly makes for a jovial home when there is a Santa Claus or two smiling at you every time you walk into the room.  Some collectors display their Santa’s according to a particular theme like “Patriotic Santa” where the entire Santa’s are dressed in variations of red, white, and blue and wave little USA flags.

I simply adore the hand carved and hand painted Russian Santa figurines from Russia. An artist that hand carves the figurine from Linden wood then hand paints gorgeous scenes on the figure makes these Santa’s. During the harsh Russian winters, Grandfather Frost and his granddaughter, the Snow Maiden, drive his sleigh from deep within the forests to deliver gifts to the Russian people. Designs on these Santa’s can be so detailed with full painted scenes of children gathered around Christmas trees and Troika – 3 horses pulling a sleigh. Russian wooden Santa’s can range in price from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars. Great site here for Russian Santas.

Another type of collectible Santa Claus figurine is Belsnickel. A Belsnickel is the fur-clad Santa or Old-World Santa that originated in northwestern Germany along the Rhine. In the 19th century the Belsnickel Santa was not a jolly roly-poly Santa we know today but rather a character that frightened the community. Belsnickel brought goodies for well-behaved girls and boys, and carried a whip and sticks to punish the naughty. Customs varied from community to community, but the enormous role of Belsnickel played in Christmas celebrations is evidenced by the many cookie cutters, chocolate molds, dolls, papier-mâché figurines, scrapbook cut outs, and postcards that survive from the era.

The 1950s-1960s Spaghetti Santa Claus figurines are desired today. Perhaps it’s the nostalgia of the good old days these vintage Santa’s bring to those that collect them. Most of these Santa’s were imported from Japan by companies like Lefton, Irice, Napco, Holt Howard and Inarco to name a few and were painted with bright colors and shiny glazes. These vintage figurines can be bought today for $9.99 – $50.00 and really are charming!

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