GALVESTON — You never know what you may find at an estate sale. That’s something book dealer Louise Nichols of Yesterday’s Books learned with time. But even after 18 years in the business, she still gets surprises.
About a month ago, Nichols got a call.
“My friend said there was an estate sale and there were some books nobody was bidding on,” she said. “They (the deceased man’s sister and her husband) were leaving the next day and didn’t want to take anything back to Chicago.”
Habit, curiosity or both prompted Nichols to drive to the apartment on Stewart Road.
What she found in a dark living room corner were boxes filled with books in poor condition and knee-high stacks of paper. Nichols was about to leave empty-handed when she spotted a big manila envelope under a pile of postcards.
It was this handwritten note with the familiar name that caught her attention: “Menus for Louise.”
“I had a feeling there were wonderful treasures in there, but I did not have a clue of what I would find,” Nichols said. “When I got back to the shop and opened it, I started calling my friends and family. I like the historical aspect, the design and the paper.”
Displaying at her shop dozens of rare hotel menus created in honor of presidents, congressmen, kings, queens, scientists, inventors and aviation pioneers, Nichols knows she holds in her hands gems of times gone by.
From her findings, it looks like the owner of the island apartment, John D. Willy, was the grandson of John Willy, editor and publisher of The Hotel Monthly Press. Willy was married to Mary Louise Launder.
Most menus are from 1930s to 1950, but some date back to the early 1900s. The bulk came from such high-end hotels as the Waldorf-Astoria in New York and the Palmer House in Chicago.
With hand-tooled leather and gold-embossed covers, the multiple-page menus made of handmade paper, bound and tied with silk ribbon, are elaborate works of art.
They include photos of the guests of honor, watercolor illustrations and prints depicting historical events.
The most valuable menus are those made by Tiffany & Co. Some are signed by maîtres d’hôtel. Many have two blank pages for autographs.
They list eight to 15 courses, sometimes adapting the names of the dishes to the occasion. Such is the case of a Fourth of July black-tie event in which guests ate melon Washington, cucumbers William Penn and sherbet Independence.
Nuts, ripe olives and celery hearts reigned as appetizers and serving “saumon,” “jambon” and “pommes de terre” seems to have been more chic than serving salmon, ham and potatoes.
Beef and vegetables “à la parisienne,” “au gratin” and “aux champignons” also must have been favorites among those with exquisite palates.
The menus left nothing out. They spelled out the names of guests and speakers, orchestra players, reception committee members and, in some cases, they even featured a seating diagram.
Nichols gets goose bumps readings some of those names.
Since finding the menus, she has done Internet research on the lives of some of the people who received the tributes.
Some, like Amelia Earhart or Charles Lindbergh, needed no introductions.
Researching others was like getting a refresher course in history.
“I learned some parts of history I didn’t have a clue about,” Nichols said.
Among the 300-plus vintage menus, one from 1919 was dedicated to Herbert Hoover, who 10 years later would become the 31st president of the United States. Sponsored by The American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, the dinner was organized “in appreciation of his unselfish services in the cause of mankind.”
A banquet in 1928 at the ballroom of The Stevens, which has since become the Chicago Hilton, honored Hugo Eckener and members of his party.
Eckener, a German aeronautical engineer, was the commander of the Graf Zeppelin, the first lighter-than-air aircraft to fly around the world.
Another menu from Oct. 21, 1929, celebrates the 50th anniversary of the invention of the incandescent light bulb. According to the document, the lavish dinner featured a re-enactment of Thomas Alva Edison’s invention.
“Limited Space. Amplifiers will bring a description of the ceremony to the banquet room,” the menu stated.
Rather than a piecemeal deal, Nichols said she’d like to sell the collection to a single person or organization.
But business is business. If she needs to reconsider, she will. Some of the menus still don’t carry a price tag, but Nichols estimates $30 is a good average. Yet menus bearing more historical significance could sell for $100 or more.
“Whoever gets them will be as excited for them as I was when I found them,” she said. “If I had bought them 15 years ago, I would have started a collection, but through the years of doing business, I have found that every time I find a special collection, I start collecting that also. I don’t collect anything other than family items anymore. Otherwise, I would have a house full of a little bit of everything.”
