Last Thursday, a collector friend and I went to St Charles,IL, for the fall meeting of the Cash Register Collectors Club.

A fast trip. We left early Thursday, and we were on our way home before noon Friday.

Activities in St. Charles started Thursday morning, in the parking lot of a local motel. Our tailgate swap meet lasted until 3 o’clock.

I usually have items for the swap meet, and I sold a fair number of them this time.

I have been known to give away items. However, not this time. After the swap meet, we proceeded down the street to a restaurant for nourishment before heading back to the motel for our business meeting and speaker.

The business part of our meeting covered the standard items, as with any organization, minutes, treasurer’s report, old and new business, plus and some lively discussion on the state of the Club.

Our speaker for the evening was John Carini, a member of the Club. His presentation was on collecting coin-op items and the rare finds that are part of his collection. John started collection machines in the mid-1980s. By 1990, he was writing coin-op articles for magazines. Some of his accomplishments include: the advisory editor of the Coin Slot Magazine form 1995-1999, published a book – Pocket Guide to Coin-op Vending Machines, and was he Vice President of COCA 2003-2005.

How It Began

I formed the Cash Register Collectors Club twelve years ago, after purchasing my first cash register. Seeing a need for an organization, to assist those of us interested in cash registers and their preservation, I took the initiative.

At our first get-together we had a total of nine interested collectors and one spouse. All nine and the spouse, who actually joined the club later, are still members. The spouse has served the club as secretary, vice president and until now, the editor of our newsletter. From the initial meeting, we grew to over 250 members, all around the world.

Today, we hover around 200 members, mostly from the states, with a significant number of foreign members.

I have remained active in the club since its inception, having served in most capacities. In April of 2008, I was awarded a lifetime membership and given the title of President Emeritus, for which I’m very appreciative.

We always hold our meetings to coincide with the Chicagoland Co-Op Show, each April and November at the Pheasant Run Resort, also in St Charles. Many members will venture out early Friday morning to the resort’s parking lot, to see what is being unloaded. Most vendors will set up their merchandise outside, prior to moving it inside for the weekend show.

Personally I like to wait, have breakfast, then proceed to Pheasant Run. At 8 o’clock, you don’t need a flashlight and there’s much more activity at that hour. The sun is up, and it’s warmer in that cold Chicago suburb.

I seldom buy anything.

Therefore, it isn’t necessary for me to arrive early, to find that rare register, or get that great buy. Some question why I even go since I seldom do any purchasing.

This event gives me an opportunity to see many unusual coin-operated machines, advertising pieces, cash registers and other items. You don’t need to spend money to have a good time. Actually, there wasn’t anything at either event that I was really interested in, with the exception of a cash register I thought was too expensive.

If you are interested in cash registers or related memorabilia, just send me an email or visit the Club’s web-site at CRCCI.org for more information.

Mr. Hennessey may be contacted at pmhenn@sbcglobal.net