When I tell people I collect matchcovers, I generally hear, "Wow! Really? That's Neat!". I also get some people asking how I got started and why I collect them. It all started in 1972, during a trip to Niagara Falls with my parents and sister. Being 7 years old, I was fascinated with the observation towers, especially the Skylon Tower with the elevators on the outside. I thought the elevators looked like big yellow bugs. As we were walking around on the Canadian side, I found an empty matchcover with the Skylon Tower on it. I picked it up to show it to my parents, and Dad told me that he used to collect matchcovers when he was a kid. The rest of the trip I kept looking for matchcovers. I still have that first matchcover, and keep it on the first page of my album in the upper-left spot. I continued collecting after that trip pretty much for the same reason people buy postcards, thimbles, little spoons, etc. of where they have been. They are souvenirs of places I've been and places my friends and family have been. The best part is that it's essentially a free hobby. In 30 years, I would guess I've spent less than $75. Almost all of that has been for ways to display them. My future plan for this page is to take digital pictures of some of my favorite matchcovers and possibly put up informational page. In the mean time, you can check out the link below!
