Found an original family Victrola VV-XVIII in the wild

[tictalk]

That is gorgeous , Congratulations, XVIII's are such elegant machines

[fran604g]

Congratulations on your acquisition - as others have opined, that's a wonderful find made very special with its provenance.

Best,
Fran

[Django]

Thank you for the supportive comments. I still can't believe that it is sitting there. I was fortunate enough to be the first to respond to the ad. Facebook Marketplace has been very good for my collecting, but you have to be fast and if it is a good deal, I suggest that you don't try to make it better or you may lose out.

[Cody K]

Congratulations on an exceptional find! I found my XVIII on Craigslist when CL was the only game in town -- it seems that more phonographs pop up on facebook than on CL now. I bought it from a couple -- she looked to be in her early eighties, he proudly declared his age as 93 -- who'd had it passed down in his family. His parents, immigrants from Ireland, had been domestic servants for a family on Beacon Street in Boston, and the Victrola was given to them as a wedding present, used, in 1921. The serial number is 1098.

What's the dealer tag on yours? Mine is from the West End Phonograph Co., on Leverett Street in Boston. Leverett Street was one of the many acquired by eminent domain and razed by the Boston Redevelopment Authority in the mid-1950s.

Your "new" XVIII looks beautiful, and I hope you'll post more pictures of it as you get it buffed up...

[msarnold1990]

Congrats on the find! You were slightly faster than me, I was second in line. They obviously had no idea what they had on their hands.

[Victor VII]

(As with many antiques) when you find such pieces in their original configuration, the elegant taste of the era as expressed by the original designers/craftsmen becomes very apparent. you've found a beautiful treasure! Congrats!

[Zwebie]

Beautiful find! Great provenance! Good for you!

Bob S.

[Django]

Congrats on the find! You were slightly faster than me, I was second in line. They obviously had no idea what they had on their hands.

He actually did know what he had. He quoted prices that he had seen. I had a nice talk with him on Sunday and he said that they were moving to Florida and couldn’t take it with them and that they wanted it to go to someone that would appreciate it. I told him that I didn’t feel good about only giving him $500 for it, so I gave him $1000, and I feel that I still came out ahead. I have no business sense, but I’m ok with that. Now I have to figure out which machine to re-home.

[Django]

Congratulations on an exceptional find! I found my XVIII on Craigslist when CL was the only game in town -- it seems that more phonographs pop up on facebook than on CL now. I bought it from a couple -- she looked to be in her early eighties, he proudly declared his age as 93 -- who'd had it passed down in his family. His parents, immigrants from Ireland, had been domestic servants for a family on Beacon Street in Boston, and the Victrola was given to them as a wedding present, used, in 1921. The serial number is 1098.

What's the dealer tag on yours? Mine is from the West End Phonograph Co., on Leverett Street in Boston. Leverett Street was one of the many acquired by eminent domain and razed by the Boston Redevelopment Authority in the mid-1950s.

Your "new" XVIII looks beautiful, and I hope you'll post more pictures of it as you get it buffed up...

They may have shared floor space. The original owner was a Boston leather merchant named Max Stone.

[emerson]

The machine is nice but it doesn't compare to the person you are for your honesty with the monetary advance ----the new owner makes the machine shine.----just my opinion