The golden voice of a prominent auctioneer in Monroe County is now silent.
Robert Brandau has passed away.
Robert “Bob” R. Brandau, 90, of South Ridge peacefully passed away Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019, surrounded by his family, on the home farm where he was born.
Bob was a lifelong member of St. Matthew’s Evangelical Lutheran Church on South Ridge, where he was baptized and confirmed. He served twice as the president of the congregation. He was a faithful servant and often said, “God’s been good to me.”
The story of this colorful character began Sept. 1, 1929, when he was born to Rudolph and Anna (Birkholz) Brandau. The world would be forever changed by Bob’s profound ability to bring people together with a collective purpose. Rarely would you find a person who knew Bob who didn’t have a story to tell about a shared experience. Whether it be the setup for an auction or preparing for an event or card game or the building or repairing of something, Bob generally needed an entourage of people to help out with his “projects,” and he had an uncanny ability to recruit just the right people for the job. He woke up every day with a strong purpose and found people to buy into his ideas.
In 1950, Bob followed in the footsteps of his Uncle Conrad and became an auctioneer. He graduated from Reisch Auction School in Mason City, Iowa. Auctioneering was his life passion and a skill that he retained until his passing. It didn’t matter if it was a 25-cent box of trinkets or a $1,000 Holstein cow, he loved the auction method and firmly believed in it. He began selling for Randall Livestock in Tomah, and later sold at livestock markets in Coon Valley, Wisconsin Dells, Viola and Augusta. Bob called hundreds of on-site antique, household and farm auctions for other companies before his daughter, Mary Jo Hill, and son, Ken, joined him in founding the Brandau-Hill Auction Company.
As he began auctioneering and milking cows on the home farm, a cute little teacher at the one-room schoolhouse in South Ridge caught his attention. According to her, “He had a humble, caring spirit, but he drove too fast and had loud Hollywood mufflers.” Boy, was she impressed. On June 23, 1954, Bob was united in marriage to Alice Anderson, who became his tireless partner in a whole host of adventures. Those adventures included having five children, several business start-ups, and literally thousands of potential projects that he hoped would all come to fruition.
Alice spent her lifetime with Bob just trying to keep ahead of his next big idea. He conjured up lists of things he still needed to do. He talked about having more small-animal auctions. He wanted to paint the fence by the house. He thought he’d buy a different truck in the spring. The ideas never stopped. Remember that this is the man who had a prosthetic leg, who hadn’t driven in over a year, and spent the majority of his day in a lift chair at South Ridge. His brain never shut off. He could always do more.
Bob was a fearless entrepreneur, a risk-taker, and someone who could visualize things before they existed. He was especially committed to the success and development of the community of Kendall. In 1969, he purchased a livestock buying station from Adolph Wopat and built R. Brandau Livestock, which opened on Oct. 29 that same year. The livestock barn was one of the greatest accomplishments of his career, as it provided a market for buyer and sellers for 50 years. Whether it be the dairy, horse or small-animal sale, he thoroughly enjoyed interacting with the hundreds of people who came to the sale barn. He loved building community and providing space for people to connect. In the mid-1980s, he built the Round House Express, a convenience store in Kendall, and later built a second store, 71 Express, in Norwalk.
Bob was a member of the Kendall Lions Club for 50-plus years and served as the auctioneer for their annual auction for 48 years. He received the Knight of Sight Fellowship and the Melvin Jones award, which is the organization’s highest honor. He was also a strong supporter of the Wisconsin Auctioneer’s Association. He was elected president in 1976 and received the prestigious Hall of Fame award. Bob was a member of the Wisconsin State Legislative Board, which initiated the first license for auctioneers and was a member of the National Auctioneer’s Association for many years. His community service extended beyond Kendall, as Bob donated his auction skills by selling millions of dollars in support for the National Turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited, Whitetail Deer Association, NRA, and countless other benefits.
Bob’s grandchildren all knew that gatherings would include at least one game of Crazy 8’s or euchre. Put a deck of cards in Bob’s hand, and his entire demeanor changed. His face would light up, he’d get a twinkle in his eye, and his entire vocabulary changed. He’d often times “play it alone” when he had no business even bidding in the first place … and he’d “make it.” He treasured the Canadian fishing trips with them and watching their various sporting events. In these times, they experienced a youthful, confident and spirited grandpa whom they all cherished.
As Bob’s health declined, Alice, their children and families literally wrapped their arms around him and provided all of his care. He was extremely grateful to have them in his life and considered them one of God’s greatest blessings. He cherished Alice and his children above all else. Working together with them on the farm, at an auction, or at an event was what he loved. He knew he had succeeded as a father because he raised God-fearing, hardworking and community-minded children. Alice was the absolute love of his life, and he was so grateful for her constant care and compassion, especially the past three years. She was his faithful servant through it all.
Survivors are his wife of 65 years, Alice; five children, Gale (Ardis) Brandau of Tomah, Mary Jo (Bill) Hill of Kendall, Susan (Norman) Peck of Marshall, Wis., Ken (Dawn) Brandau of Kendall and Ann (Matt) Brandau Hynek of Hillsboro; 12 grandchildren, Amy (Kermit) Sharpe, Ryan Brandau, Jeri (Raymond) Maack, and Lacy Brandau, Jacob (Jen) Hill, Addison (Megan) Peck and Gavin Peck, Ethan (Cheyenne) Brandau, Mikaela and Abby Brandau, and Sawyer and Gunner Hynek; eight great-grandchildren, Ryan Stanek, Cole and Connor Sharpe, Nathan, Heidi and Miles Maack, Benjamin Hill, and Beckett Peck; his sisters- and brothers-in law, Joan and Joe Belsky, Jean and Roger Neitzel, and David and Barb Anderson; and many nieces and nephews.
Preceding him in death were his parents; his sister, Norma Jean, and her husband, Ellsworth Steuck; a grandson, “Andy” Brandau; and his brother- and sister-in-law, Norman and Margaret Anderson.
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History of Auctioneering
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In 1964, Sotheby’s expanded itself by buying Parke-Bernet, the USA’s largest fine art auction house at the time. Today, it’s noted as the oldest and largest international firm of fine art auctioneers in the world. It has 80 locations across the globe and sees an annual turnover of about $4 billion.
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In 1786, Christie’s sold the library of the famous Dr. Samuel Johnson, creator of the Dictionary of the English Language (1755). This collection included insightful books on a variety of topics, including but not limited to medicine, law, math, and theology.
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In 1824, The National Gallery was founded in London. It opened its doors with many purchases from Christie’s. New York’s MET museum also made its first connection to the London market through Christie’s, sending them their first lot for sale in 1958. Today, Christie’s boasts a worldwide influence with locations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
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In June 2019, French-Israeli telecom businessman Patrick Drahi made an offer to buy Sotheby’s for $3.7 billion. This meant that following the acquisition, Sotheby’s could be more flexible in its deals now that it didn’t have to justify expensive guarantees or other benefits to shareholders. This new structure also gave comfort to their higher-profile buyers who would rather not be scrutinized by the public eye. Following the adoption of this new private curtain, the comparison between Sotheby’s and Christie’s was more strongly apples to apples than ever before.
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The auction by candle also played a pivotal role in defining legal history. It was used as a standard procedure in the Court of Chancery, where trust property was sold off. The Sales of Land by Auction Act 1867 officially made it lawful to pay commission to an auctioneer, marking a significant milestone in the auctioneering profession.
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The most valuable picture postcard in the world was sent by Theodore Hook Esq. to himself in 1840 and was bought at the London Stamp Exchange auction, UK on 8 March 2002 by collector Eugene Gomberg (Latvia) for £31,758.75 ($45,370.60). It is also considered to be the oldest postcard in the world.
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The oldest bottle of wine to have been sold at auction was a bottle of 1646 Imperial Tokay, which was bought by John A. Chunko of Princeton, New Jersey, USA and Jay Walker of Ridgefield, Connecticut, USA for SFr 1250 (£;405) including buyers premium at Sothebys, Geneva, Switzerland on 16 Nov 1984.
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The most expensive wine sold at auction is a Romanée Conti 1945 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti bottle, sold at $558,000 (£422,801; €481,976) including premium, auctioned by Sotheby’s in New York, USA, on 13 October 2018.
The 73 year old French Burgundy bottle, part of a 600 batch produced by Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, sold more than 17 times the original asking price of $32,000 (£24,246; €27,640). The mark up in the bottles value is suspected to be a result of Chinese market’s interest in French Burgundy. In addition, the bottle was sold by Robert Drouhin, patriarch of Maison Joseph Drouhin.
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A Batpod motorcycle used in the filming of The Dark Knight Rises (USA, 2012) sold at the 2016 Prop Store Live Auction by Prop Store (UK) on 27 September 2016 for £312,000 ($404,393).
The Batpod was the “hero” vehicle used for filming close-ups, meaning that it had more detail than others used for filming at long distance but is largely non-functioning. The motorcycle was designed by Christopher Nolan and production designer Nathan Crowley, and brought to life by special-effects artist Chris Corbould, who made six of the vehicles. Its pre-auction estimate was between $80,000 and $110,000, so it secured about four times the expected price.
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