I’m betting the Amon G. Carter handmade poker table will fetch a pretty penny at this weekend’s auction of Jarrell and Brenda McDonald’s huge collection of Western memorabilia.
Then again, who knows what can happen at an auction. Should be interesting.
This week’s Static describes how early Fort Worth furniture maker August Brandt allegedly built this poker table and eight chairs for Amon G. Carter back in the late 1920s or early 1930s. The McDonalds bought the table in 1998 from a woman who worked for years at Carter’s weekend retreat, Shady Oaks Farm on Lake Worth. Tycoons, governors, even presidents, along with local movers and shakers of the day, were among Carter’s guests.
The McDonalds opened the Bum Steer and the Cross-Eyed Moose in the mid-1990s and quickly became a prime source for vintage A. Brandt Ranch Oak furniture. A woman named Shirley Gardner called the McDonalds in 1998 and said she had a Ranch Oak poker table they should come see.
They drove to her house, looked at it, and spotted a problem. August Brandt’s son, Paul, began making Ranch Oak in 1938, and this table didn’t have the familiar markings.
“I said, ‘Maam, I’m sorry but that’s not Ranch Oak,’ ” Jarrell recalled. “She swelled up like a tick and said, ‘I’ll have you know August Brandt made that himself for Mr. Carter.’ ”
Gardner had worked for years at Shady Oaks Farm and said she received the poker table and a bedroom suite after Carter died. She still owned the bedroom suite but refused to sell it.
Other items with local connections that will be auctioned include a mounted longhorn that hung in the Backstage Club at Will Rogers Coliseum, vintage Stockyards photographs, advertising memorabilia, original paintings, and a buffalo head that hung for 30 years in the Cowtown Coliseum.
Personally, I kinda dig this 101 Ranch Wild West Show vintage banner from the early 1900s:
Then again, I’d also love to have this Colt Single Action Army .44 rimfire pistol:
More than 1,000 items will be auctioned to the highest bidders on Saturday and Sunday in the Stockyards.
“It’s our collection and we’re getting rid of everything,” Jarrell said. “I’m even selling stuff I bought in high school, stuff I’ve had for 45 years. Our house was packed. We couldn’t buy any new art work or furniture — we didn’t have any place to put it. The hunt is the fun part.”
Ranch Oak furniture is as strong as iron and built to last.
The Brandts went to the same church as my family and my parents knew them.
I saw Paul and George Brandt almost every Sunday at church growing up although Paul stood out more than George. Paul drove Lincolns and always wore a hat long after hats went out of style.
I wonder whatever happened to all the Ranch Oak the Brandts donated to Concordia College in Austin.
Who said hats are out of style? There are lots of brilliant, handsome guys who are still wearing hats today.
I have a large family room collection of A.Brandt furniture. 1)straight couch with coffee table, 1)sectional couch with round coffee table w/ turntable 1)Hutch w/shelves 3)crossbuck end tables,1)magazine rack,1)coat stand,1)game table w/turntable w/six chairs,1)ceiling chandelier for game table,2) wagon hub lamps, 2)rocking platform chairs w/ottomans, 2)three leg milking stools All in good to excellent condition. Has been in my family since new. Call ralph at 601.402.3757 in southern mississippi. Would love to sell as a set but will split up if needed. All natural light oak. Email me and I can send photos.
call Jarrell at the Crosseyed Moose
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