Claudia McDonald smiled and laughed Tuesday afternoon as the Treasure Hunters Roadshow cashier handed her a check for $825.
"I'm glad I came in!" said McDonald, of Proctor. "I really need the money."
McDonald, who received about $75 more than she anticipated for a gold coin minted in 1986, was one of about 130 people who tested the market Tuesday for their antiques and collectibles at the Treasure Hunters Roadshow. The opportunity runs through Saturday at the Suites Hotel at the Waterfront Plaza in Canal Park.
McDonald, who got estimates of about $750 from pawn shops, inherited the coin with a face value of $50 from her aunt and will use the money to help pay bills that are difficult to cover because disabilities limit the single woman's ability to work.
While McDonald had the brightest reaction, a Hibbing man reeled in Tuesday's biggest paycheck. More than 4,000 silver coins, with a face value of $1,000, netted the man about $8,900.
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"We only see that amount once every month or two months," said Tony Enright, who manages Roadshows in the U.S. and Canada for 39 weeks during the year.
Enright said the Roadshow, which searches databases and contacts collectors to gauge interest in items, typically attracts about 60 to 70 visitors the first day, but with Tuesday's turnout in Duluth double the usual, he said the number of visitors by the end of the week could reach 700 or even 1,000.
Beatrice Ojakangas of Duluth and Dianne Brooke of Superior were among the estimated 50 percent of people who come to test the market but don't sell their items because they aren't satisfied with the offer or because there aren't interested buyers.
Brooke inquired about a 1958 Barbie, an accompanying 1963 Dream House and about 17 dresses and other outfits for the tan, brunette doll. After talking with collectors, Enright said the best offer for the entire package was about $100.
"No, I think I'm gonna wait," said Brooke, who played with the doll as a child and holds hope that selling the toys will help her pay for an upcoming trip to graduate school.
Ojakangas sought the value of a small spoon that she and her husband, Richard Ojakangas, bought while in England in 1956. Friends told the couple to take the spoon out of the sugar bowl and see what it was worth. On Tuesday, however, a buyer told the couple it wasn't worth much.
"It's going back in the sugar bowl," Richard Ojakangas said.
