William “Bill” Edward Miedema, 88, of South Beloit, IL, passed away March 10, 2015 at Willowfield Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Delavan, WI. William was born May 7, 1926 in Brodland, SD, to Claus and Rachel Miedema. Bill attended school there until enlisting in the United States Navy and serving in the South Pacific Arena on the USS Saratoga-03 in World War II. He later received a purple heart for his military service. Bill married Carol Williams Ranft in Huron, SD on December 19, 1947. After working for the Chicago Northwestern Railroad in South Dakota, he opened an Auction House in Huron, which he and his wife owned until moving to the Stateline area in the 1960’s. Bill and Carol operated Miedema Auction in South Beloit, IL until 1980. He then continued auctioneering for many years with Beloit Auction Service, a family business. Bill was awarded the coveted Golden Gavel by the State of Wisconsin Auctioneers Association for his 50 years as an auctioneer. Bill participated in the first Vets Roll trip to Washington D.C., where he rekindled memories of his WWII service. Known as “Wild Bill” to many, he leaves a legacy of pride in his service to his country, love of his family and special friends, and memories of his years as an auctioneer. Bill is survived by his two sons, Richard (Pat) Ranft of Beloit, WI, and Michael (Linda) Miedema of Hockley, TX, two daughters, Debora (David) Burdick of Sun Prairie, WI, and Beth (David) Norris of South Beloit, IL, six granddaughters, Tracy (John) Ferraro of Arlington Heights, IL, Nichole (Brad) Cheske of Beloit, WI, Erica (Gabriel) Vogel of Austin, TX, Danielle (Jason Hawkins) Burdick of Madison, WI, Jessica (Logan) Lucas of Austin, TX, and Darcy Burdick of Sun Prairie, WI, three grandsons, William Burdick of Madison, WI, Joshua Norris of South Beloit, IL, and David (Kristin Toon) Norris of Freemont, CA, fourteen great-grandchildren, three brothers, Claus Jr, Steven, and Eddie, and two sisters, Lillian, and Nellie, and his dog, Willie. He was preceded in death by his wife, Carol, and three brothers, James, Robert, and Clarence.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
History of Auctioneering
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most expensive suit (clothing) sold at auction is Rs. (Rupees) 43,131,311 (£448,944; $693,174) and was bought by Laljibhai Tulsibai Patel (India), in Surat, Gujarat, India, on 20 February 2015.
- The suit was worn by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi.
- The proceeds from this auction went to the Namami Gange Fund, a project to clean the Ganges river.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
Sold for £640 (US$939.84), the world’s most expensive Post-It® Note features a pastel and charcoal work called After Rembrandt by artist RB Kitaj. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Post-it® Note, celebrity artists were asked to create miniature masterpieces on Post-it® Notes that were then auctioned online 13-20 December 2000 raising over £5,000 ($7,300) for charity.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
Sold for £640 (US$939.84), the world’s most expensive Post-It® Note features a pastel and charcoal work called After Rembrandt by artist RB Kitaj. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Post-it® Note, celebrity artists were asked to create miniature masterpieces on Post-it® Notes that were then auctioned online 13-20 December 2000 raising over £5,000 ($7,300) for charity.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most valuable chocolate bar in the world is a 100-year old Cadbury’s chocolate bar which went on Captain Robert Scott’s first Discovery expedition (1901-1904) to the Antarctic. The bar, which is 10 cm (4 in) long, wrapped and uneaten in a cigarette tin, was bought for £470 ($687) by an anonymous buyer at Christie’s, London, UK on 25 September 2001.
The bar was made at Cadbury’s Bournville factory in Birmingham and was part of 1,587 kg (3,500 lb) of cocoa and chocolate Scott took on the trip.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most expensive videogame sold at an online auction is a sealed copy of Super Mario 64, which sold for $1,560,000 (£1,121,490 / €1,313,080) at an online auction hosted by Heritage Auctions (USA), on 11 July 2021.
The fee broke a record set just days earlier when a sealed copy of The Legend of Zelda sold for $870,000 (£627,744 / €733,910) in an online auction also hosted by Heritage Auctions.
The 1996 Nintendo 64 cartridge was given a 9.8 A++ rating by video game collectable firm Wata.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most expensive bottle of water sold at auction was for $774,000 pesos, $60,000 US (£39,357) at an auction organised by Plan3t Foundation A.C. at La Hacienda de los Morales, Mexico City, Mexico on, 4 March 2010. The glass bottle is covered in 24-karat gold and is based on artwork by the late Italian artist Amedeo Clemente Modigliani. The funds raised from the auction were donated to the foundation to battle global warming.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most expensive tuna fish sold at an auction is a bluefin tuna sold at a price of 333,600,000 Yen ($3,082,610; £2,431,410) to Sushizanmai of Kiyomura Corporation (Japan) at the annual first fish auction of the year at Toyosu Market in Koto, Tokyo, Japan, on 5 January 2019. It was caught in Oma, Aomori, Japan, and it weighed 278 kg (612 lb 14.24 oz).
It was the first “first market auction of the year” celebration at Toyosu Market. CEO of Kiyomura served the tuna after the action. Though the tuna was the most expensive tuna fish, the price for one piece of sushi was set to the regular price.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The record total for any camera auction is £;296,043 ($535,690) for a collection of `spy’, subminiature and detective cameras sold at Christie’s, London, UK on 9 December 1991.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source:
The most money anyone has paid for a fortune cookie is £10,000 ($17,473) at an auction at the Chinese New Year Gala Dinner in aid of Kids at the Banqueting House, Whitehall, London, United Kingdom, on 8 February 2006.
Country:
Year:
Date:
Source: