PANAMA CITY, Fla. – The living estate of Terry and Karen Kelley – an astounding trove of old and rare books (many of them first-editions and/or author-signed), glass and ceramics by many top manufacturers, original artwork, furniture and collectibles in a wide array of categories – will come up for bid on Saturday, October 29th, at The Specialists of the South, at 8 am Central time.

The auction will be held in the firm’s gallery, at 544 East 6th Street in Panama City. All of the estimated 500-plus lots will comprise the Kelley estate, with no additions. A wonderful selection of tools and large tool chests will be auctioned (on the ground only), at 7 am, prior to the live and internet auction. Internet bidding will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com.

Most of the items were gathered over the years by Karen Kelley, a former Registered Nurse and pediatric nurse who is also an accomplished writer, poet and songwriter. Her life is as colorful as the items in her inventory. While studying nursing, she ran a filling station in Plant City, Fla., and one day Elvis Presley pulled in for gas. He gave her a scarf (with a printed signature) that will be in the sale.

“Sometimes Elvis rode the bus to shows and sometimes he drove,” Kelly recalled of that day in the 1970s. “On this day, he was driving. He had three other men with him, who might have been singers. He got out and we talked for awhile. I remember he had a Coke with some bourbon in it. He played his Gibson guitar a little bit, gave me the scarf and a photo of himself and drove off.”

Other celebrities who she's crossed paths with include Merle Haggard, Kim Carnes, Jerry Reed, Lee Greenwood and the group Bandana – performers she met at outdoor concerts where she had a ringside seat, as an attending nurse, in case of accident or illness. She got signed photos from some of them, and these will be sold as well. Poor health is forcing her to part now with her many treasures.

An avid reader, Ms. Kelley is a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers of America. She also traveled with John Stark of the Ohio Booksellers and was personally given many books in her collection by Van Allen Bradley, the former book editor of the Chicago Tribune. Many of her books are signed, numbered and “tipped in” - with the author's signature or artwork inserted into the book. A copy of John Steinbeck's book, The Moon is Down, for example, with Steinbeck's signature tipped in, will be included in the auction.

The book that's expected to fetch the most is a signed copy (#45 of 95) of Kahlil Gibran's Sand & Foam. Gibran (1883-1931) was the noted Lebanese-American artist, poet and writer of the New York Pen League, best known for the book The Prophet. Sand & Foam is expected to sell for $2,000 or more. Also offered will be copies of many of the books that Mark Twain authored.

Kelley's substantial collection of Elbert Hubbard books will be sold, with titles including Little Journeys to Homes of the Great, to Homes of English Authors and to Homes of Great Musicians, as well as scrapbooks, pamphlets and more. Also sold will be two volumes of poetry by William Cowper (Br., 1731-1800), with fore-edge paintings on the edges of the pages for beautification. One shows the Tower or London and the other Windsor Castle, both of them English landmarks.

What is widely regarded as the first Girl Scout book written – Juliet Low's How Girls Can Help Their Country (written in 1917, more for teens and young adults than children, and before the term “Girl Scouts” was even coined), well-worn and housed in a handmade solander case, will cross the auction block. A companion to that will be a Boy Scout handbook, published in 1938.

Lavishly illustrated books by the American ornithologist John J. Audubon (Am., 1785-1851) are always a hit with collectors. The sale will feature a two-volume work in a slipcase of Audubon watercolor paintings, reproduced in color from the New York Society collection; and a huge, two-volume “baby elephant” folio Birds of America (#1720/2500), signed by Roger Tory and Virginia Marie Peterson.

Other books will include Harold Berman's three-volume set from 1800-1830 titled Bronzes; the second McGuffey Reader from 1844, in a buckram wrapper; Birth & Triumph of Cupid, from papers cut by Lady Dashwood in Her Majesty's Collection (Elizabeth, Princess of Great Britain, published in 1775); 62 Tauchnitz hardbound editions (not paperbacks, but made for the masses), including German and British authors; and over 70 of the 100 Greatest Works from the Franklin Library, plus first-editions, signed limited-editions and Pulitzer Prize-winning authors, from the Franklin Library.

It's also important to note that the sale will also include books about book collecting, and books about photography (to go with a selection of cameras that will also be featured). One other lot worthy of mention is a carved solid mahogany set of lion bookends by E. Kopriwa of Chicago.

The glass lots will feature many Steuben pieces, (including a 20th century acid stamp (Carter) green jade glassware, Fenton (with many pieces artist-signed), cranberry glass (hand-painted, hobnail and coinspot), black amethyst, cut and pressed glass, a cobalt butter dish and Victorian hand vase, and Fostoria American, with a scarce Old Round Cake Salver.

Ceramics will include Flow Blue (pieces in the Burslem Doulton Watteau pattern, plus many others), Haviland, Japanese Yamaka Southwind, a Sadler tea set, an Edelstein Maria Theresia demi-tasse tea set (German), signed Roycrofters small brown jugs, and other desirable pieces.

Metal lots will feature a full-figure bronze sculpture of Napoleon by Ernst L. Kirchner (German, 1880-1938), a Western-themed bronze sculpture after Charles M. Russell (Am., 1864-1926), titled The Round-Up; and a fine set of Roycrofters bookends.

Artwork will include a watercolor by Ray Ellis (Am., 1921-2013), titled Daufuskie Lane; a pair of watercolors by the living South Carolina painter Gordon Wheeler, titled Pelican and Horse & Buggy; a Daryl Howard limited-edition work titled Footsteps of Ancient Journeys; and two watercolors by the living Georgia artist Dan Goad, titled Bird After Frog and Two Birds & Nest.

Collectibles will be plentiful, to include a large collection of Western-themed Lionstone decanters, most of them filled with bourbon; costume and gemstone jewelry, some of it 10kt and 14kt; a collection of Marchbanks Press calendars and blotters from 1915-1936, mostly partial years; a 10-inch-long brass cannon; hand-made quilts; and Indo-Bijar and Indo-Kashan rugs.

Furniture pieces will include an oak Arts & Crafts-style library table, an inlaid Federal-style open armchair, antique side and children's rockers, a metal Gothic-style canopy queen-sized bed, lots of shabby chic (painted to look distressed), and old wicker pieces.

In addition to live and internet bidding, telephone and absentee bids will also be accepted. Previews will be held the week prior to auction, from 9-11 am and 2-4 pm, at The Specialists of the South gallery, and from 7 am on auction day until the first gavel falls at 8 am Central time.

The Specialists of the South, Inc. has been serving the Panama City community for more than 35 years. The company specializes in a broad range of services, to include estate auctions, furniture refurbishing, interior decoration, personal property appraisals and business liquidation services. It has been named the Small Business of the Month by the Bay County Chamber of Commerce.

The Specialists of the South, Inc., is always accepting quality consignments for future sales. To consign an item, estate or collection, you may call them at (850) 785-2577, or you may e-mail them at contact@sospcfl.com. To learn more, or to register for the October 29th auction, log on to either www.SpecialistsoftheSouth.com or www.PanamaCityAuctions.com. Updates are posted often.

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