Moderator: Thanks Sarah, an excellent question which I really want to address! I have also noticed an epidemic of "salesman's sample" trunks, especially on ebay for the last year or so. It seems that everyone who finds a small trunk wants to immediately believe it must be a rare salesman's sample! OK, here is the truth about this which is documented by a lot of research by myself and another trunk collector and restorer. Based on information found in early trunk catalogs from several trunk manufacturers, they made a wide variety of small trunks and sold them as "Toy Trunks". They were made in very small sizes up to about 20 inches long. Some of them were quite plain and simple, with paper or canvas covering, and very little hardware or trim, while some were much more elaborate and made with very detailed interiors with several compartments, paper trim and lithographs, fancier hardware, brass locks with keys, leather or embossed metal covering, and other features. Those that were quite detailed and ornate as the large full size trunks were not cheap. Obviously the higher priced toy trunks were made for wealthier customers but there were many very inexpensive models as well. Newspaper ads from the late 1800's and into the 1930's showed "toy trunks" for sale by department stores, "5 and dime stores", and even furniture stores, especially in Christmas advertising. They were apparently popular toys for Christmas and I have even found a few that had writing on them that they were given as Christmas gifts. It's not hard to see why some people would think the fancier toy or doll trunks were salesman's samples because they are so detailed and some even have the label from the trunk company inside. However, I have found NO evidence that any of these Toy Trunks or Doll Trunks were used as salesman's samples. While there could possibly be a few small trunks that were made as samples, that was not the general way of selling trunks to new customers. Trunk salesmen would travel to show their trunk line but would not need a small sample or toy trunk to do that. Trunk companies made a large variety of trunk styles and had detailed catalogs printed to show their models, sizes, and a price list. Some trunk companies even had their own retail stores, but many sold their trunks wholesale to trunk, luggage, and furniture stores. A salesman's sample would only be useful if it could show some special features or patented hardware from the trunk maker. The toy trunks that were very common and made by many companies would not show the customer any of the true features or special hardware of the full size trunks. Salesmen would travel with a regular trunk or bag which would carry their catalogs and possibly samples of their other special hardware or trunk coverings to show the customers, as well as the trunk or bag itself. (Remember nearly all trunk companies were "Trunk and Bag" companies.) Most trunk companies made large "Sample Trunks" which are shown in their catalogs and ads, and even listed on many trunk labels. These sample trunks were large heavy duty trunks made to withstand hard, frequent use by traveling salesmen of various companies. They were made in many sizes, normally flat top, and would carry everything from shoes, wallpaper, hardware, or whatever their companies produced. This was big business for trunk companies in the late 1800's to early 1900's as many new companies had salesmen traveling the country. So the "sample trunks" on trunk labels refers to the large heavy duty trunks, not a small salesman's sample.
A true salesman's sample would be a scaled down replica of the actual product and would be useful for items such as a windmill, doctor's exam table with moving parts, a steam engine, or other large items. Patent models were also required by the U.S. Patent Office between the years of 1790 to 1880. These were made to show the specific feature, such as a trunk hinge, for which a patent application was being filed. These were NOT salesman's samples and were kept by the Patent Office and later some of these were sold off to private collections. Trunks were very common utilitarian items and the catalogs that were produced had enough pictures and detail for the customer to place an order for the trunks. So, if there ever was a miniature salesman's sample trunk it would have been made to show something really special from that company such as their patented hardware, not the common generic hardware used by many other companies. I have seen only a few small trunks that may possibly qualify as a trure salesman's sample, so they are extremely rare. This is really just common sense also. I believe that many people selling a small trunk, toy or doll trunk, want to say it's a salesman's sample because they believe it will increase the value. Many people have jumped on the band wagon to call their toy trunk a salesman's sample, when they know it is not. They want to put it in their ebay listing hoping that it will get more attention. I believe many do this intentionally and over time this is confusing many people and rewriting history. So, be careful when you consider buying something because it is advertised as a "salesman's sample", especially if it's a small trunk. Small trunks and toy trunks are still very collectible and valuable if they are in good condition, unusual, ornate, and detailed, but not because they were a salesman's sample. Please email if you have any other questions on this topic. Thanks.  

Moderator-Answer: Jim, that's a great question and I've done a lot of research on that topic. First, the parts dated Oct. 1877 on your trunk were patented by Charles Taylor of Chicago, owner of Taylor Trunk Works. But that does not mean the trunk was made by Taylor Trunks. It probably was made by one of many trunk companies around the United States because many Taylor patented parts were sold to many other trunk manufacturers. The patent date will still be on the parts, but not the name Taylor. Taylor also patented other trunk parts, including a slat clamp on March 16, 1880, which is a very common part found on trunks made by many other trunk manufacturers from the 1880's until about 1915. Most of these parts were made by a large trunk parts company called Sessions Trunk Parts in Connecticut. According to a variety of old trunk catalogs and a trunk parts catalog I own from the 1880's, most of the hardware of the 1870's to 1890's was tinned, which gave it the silvery look. Tinning was basically coating or dipping the parts in tin. This was an inexpensive way to make the trunk parts look very impressive with "silver" parts such as some locks, slat clamps, braces, ornamentation, and even the tacks and nails. I've worked on hundreds of early trunks which had the tinned hardware and nails. Often when a part is removed you can see the original shiny tin finish on the back. But the tin finish wore off after several years of use and so most of the parts now look gray or dull in color. That's because of the cast metal that was used to make the trunk parts. Several catalogs listed trunks with tinned hardware and tinned nails. Brass plating of trunk parts did not start until the late 1890's and replaced the tinned parts on most trunks by around 1900. Some trunks prior to 1900 had solid brass hardware, but that was only used on the most expensive model trunks. Examples are listed in trunk catalogs of the 1880's and 1890's. So, it is not authentic and original to paint the hardware and nail heads brass on trunks from the 1870's to about 1900. People who do that just don't know any better and have been told that those trunks had brass plated parts. But, as you mentioned you can normally see traces of the tin on the old parts. Trunk styles went through a transition over time and so did the hardware used on them. This is one of the main ways to determine the actual age of a trunk. Thanks.  

Moderator-Comment: Dear Joe, Most older trunks, prior to about 1900, did not have brass hardware or brass plated hardware, but some did, such as the brass pieces on Jenny Lind trunks and brass locks on many trunks. Many trunks made after about 1900 did have parts, such as the locks, bumpers, etc. that were brass plated, and most are now found in fairly worn condition. I have also seen trunks that have all the metal parts painted with gold or brass paint, and personally I don't like that look, especially if it is gold paint and the parts were not originally brass. But everyone has their own opinion on that and how to finish the metal parts. The options include leaving it "as is" if the condition is not very worn or rusty, which I prefer. But if the metal is rusty it should be cleaned and then protected with paint in my opinion. Some people buff the metal with a wire wheel and leave it the silver color, but that of course is not original either. So, since most trunk metal parts were either painted black or brass plated, I believe in returning them to the most original condition, such as by repainting when appropriate. You can look closely at the metal parts to see if they were originally painted, or if they were brass plated. You could remove brass plated parts and have them re-plated, but that can be rather expensive. So if you like the brass look, there are some pretty good paints now that look similar to real brass. Or you can use black paint if the parts were not plated, and I think a satin black finish looks more appropriate on old trunks. I believe that tasteful and original looking repainting does not hurt the value of trunks, but painting all the parts gold or brass when the trunk was not made that way certainly can. I also suggest not repainting the metal if it is in good clean original condition, even if the brass plating is somewhat worn. Generally restoration including repainting increases the value of a trunk if it is in poor condition, but it must be done carefully. Thanks. 

Moderator-Comment: I'm sorry that I don't have any information on that particular trunk maker or company. There are many trunk makers that there is practically no information available on now. Maybe if another reader has some information they can email it to me and I will list it. Please email marvin@thisoldtrunk.com. if you have more information or other trunk questions. Thanks.