Papers Please

Last weekend our cold snap broke, cabin fever set in and my wife wanted to go to the annual Wausau antique show. The fifty dealer show is a large show for this area and over the years I have found some good buys there. This year pickings for military and badge collectors like myself were very slim and what there was, was very common or low grade and over priced. I did find one great item at the show. It was a city of Milwaukee paper chauffeurs license with attached photo dated 1950. Milwaukee, as did most other places, issued a paper photo id. License each year along with the pin back metal badge. The metal badge was to be worn by the driver, usually on his hat and the paper version was to be displayed in the cab usually on the dash or visor. The metal badges are common enough to be collected by date and I have done so for over thirty years. The paper version must be rare or at least scarce due to the lack of respect for paper and it’s frail nature. This is only the second time in my collecting life that I can remember seeing one of these paper versions. The same holds true paper certificates that came with military awards. How often does one find a military medal with the original award certificate? With few exceptions I would dare say that the papers are worth more than the actual medal. Therefore when looking at medals and badges always ask “Papers Please.”