Ronald Reagan’s baseball cap and one of Lyndon B. Johnson’s iconic fedora hats are set to fetch thousands at auction.
As part of the 250th‑anniversary celebrations, Bonhams is auctioning collectibles from the Louise Taper Collection – one of the most respected private holdings of presidential items in the country.
Running online from June 14, the collection includes 46 lots – including the earliest obtainable printing of the Bill of Rights, estimated to fetch between $8,000 and $12,000.
Congress approved 12 amendments to the Constitution on September 25, 1789, and on October 2, George Washington sent official engrossed copies to each of the 13 states for ratification.
The full text appeared the following day on page 3 of The Gazette of the United States – and this is up for sale at auction.
Other standout items include Ronald Reagan’s signed Marine One presidential baseball cap, estimated to sell for between $800 and $1,200.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s pocket watch, worth $20,000 to $30,000, and his silk top hat, estimated to sell for upwards of $20,000, are also up for sale. Auctioneers say he reportedly wore them at his first inauguration in 1933 and on other state occasions.
Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Caxton fedora, said to be “a hallmark of Eisenhower’s classic mid-century American presidential style,” is also up for sale.
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s dessert plate from the state dinner service made for President Franklin D. Roosevelt is also up for sale with a starting bid of $2,400.
The listing said she “likely kept the FDR dessert plate as a deeply personal emblem of the political lineage, shared history, and mutual respect that connected the Roosevelt and Kennedy families”.
Also up for auction is Roosevelt’s straw boater hat — gifted by Eleanor Roosevelt to Mr and Mrs Lester Entrup as a gift of service for their years as caretakers, cooks, and household staff.
Other items include 1782 Niderviller Service china owned by George Washington, with an estimate of between $50,000 and $80,000.
The collection – expected to fetch over $1.2 million – is running online until June 23.
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