Hi,
I am curious if anybody can guess the value of a beer poster. I would greatly appreciate it since I am not sure to keep or sell it.
Thanks, Ken
Here is the story along with a couple pics:
This is probably the only Sheridan Bock Beer poster that you will every find. It is probably the only remaining item of the legacy of "Sheridan Bock" and is likely the last of its kind. A Google search will turn up nothing about "Sheridan Bock" beer, but it will turn up information about the printing company "ERIE LITHO" which supports the information I received that this is made before 1920. Here is the story.
I grew up in Sheridan Wyoming. I used to collect beer cans and treasure hunt in my spare time. One time I was searching and old bar that had long been abandoned. The bar was located in an old mining town which completely dried up by the 1940s. I found this poster in what looked to be the store room of the bar. At that time (sometime in 1976 is my guess) it was in the condition you see here. Thankfully I was smart enough to move it carefully and I immediately put in in the frame you see when I got home (although I remember the frame being in much better condition).
I collected beer cans for a couple years, but I never heard of Sheridan Bock, although Sheridan Beer was popular (I had a few cans and bottles I collected of Sheridan Beer). I asked some of the old timers in the area about Sheridan Bock. Nobody heard of it, but finally somebody pointed me to an old gentleman that collected Sheridan Beer and other beer memorabilia (this was about 1980 after four years of searching). Without letting him know what I found, I asked about Sheridan Bock. He said that Sheridan Bock was brewed in the early 1900s till about 1930. It was supposedly never bottled or canned and was only offered "On Tap". I showed him the poster and he offered to buy it immediately (not going to mention the price) but I was nearly knocked out by the amount he offered. I didn't know what to do, so I held onto it. I continued the search for information on it a couple more years and found nothing.
After high school, I joined the Army, (still in BTW), and pretty much forgot about this poster, 'till this summer when I went back home to see my mom. She mentioned that I still had a few things in the Attic. I again found the poster.
There is a tear in the top left corner, a small tear at the top right corner, and it is pitted all over. This hasn't been touched since I found it (about 1976) and is really in pretty much the same condition in which I found it (no attempt at restoration has ever been performed). I put some new nails behind the cardboard covering the back of the poster (not in the poster, the old nails were not holding the poster in its frame). In the lower right corner there is printed "LITHO. IN USA ERIE LITHO. & PTG. CO. No 7000" (you can see it in the pictures). It measures approximately 25" x 20".
I took two pictures at different angles so you can tell what is a defect and what is a reflection.