Nearly every antique store you might wander into on a weekend adventure has an old advertising sign or two but few can boast a collection as impressive as the one put together by Jim Cate. For years, Cate, an avid collector, operated a museum of country store and advertising items inside The Penny Candy Store in downtown Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Cate's collection of advertising signs, cigar store Indians and country store memorabilia will be auctioned off along with similar items from other estates on April 20-22 at the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds in Ann Arbor, Michigan by Showtime Auction Services. Tin signs from Coca-Cola and Kelly Tires are expected to sell in the $10,000 range and the cigar store Indians could sell for $30,000 to $50,000. A rare cigar tip cutter from the 1890s could go for up $50,000. [via Cigar Cyclopedia]
