SHIPSHEWANA, Ind. — Sometimes it’s the big things. Sometimes it’s the little things. During the 3,500-lot sale held by Chupp Auctions & Real Estate on Jan. 15-17, it was both.

A variety of John Deere material was among the top lots of the sale. Big things. Little things. Leading all bids was a triple box wagon made by John Deere Wagon Works of Moline, Ill. Having its original stenciling and decal with the company’s guarantee, “This wagon is made of the best material and workmanship possible in farm wagon construction,” the piece sold for $11,000. A triple box wagon made by Weber, with its original toolbox and tongue, near-mint condition, brought $8,500.

Box wagons were a standard piece of farm equipment from the late 19th century into the first half of the 20th century. Think of a shoebox without the lid, but with axles and wheels. The wooden sides were relatively low, but a second tier of side boards could be added to increase the height, making it a double box wagon. Even less common was the triple box wagon, which had a third set of boards.

Auctioneer Lyle Chupp, who runs the family business with three of his brothers, said condition was paramount when it came to bidding. Of course, the John Deere name didn’t hurt, either.

“John Deere has always been hot,” he said. “We usually get pretty good prices.”

It wasn’t just the big John Deere stuff that had collectors bidding. The little thing did well too. John Deere farm literature was among the surprising smalls.

“That stuff was really hot compared to what they sometimes bring,” Chupp said.

The better lots included two John Deere Marseilles Power Corn Sheller booklets at $700 the pair; John Deere 1933 Better Crops At Lower Costs booklet, $600; John Deere Grain Elevators booklet, $500; and a John Deere Combines booklet for $400.

Falling between the ephemera and the farm equipment was a variety of other John Deere material, including a framed John Deere lithographed paper sign of a deer pulling a buggy, the frame having a tag that read “Deere Vehicles Are All Right,” which sold at $5,250; painted-wood sign, “John Deere Plows,” yellow with black letters, 12 inches high by 8 feet long, $5,200; porcelain-over-steel sign, “John Deere Farm Equipment,” double-sided, depicting the company’s leaping deer logo, red and yellow lettering on a black ground, in rough condition in an unusual size, 3 feet by 9 feet, $5,000; original cast-iron John Deere letter holder in the form of a stag jumping through a circular belt over a plow emblem, embossed “John Deere / Moline. Ill. / 1847,” $3,750; John Deere Prairie Queen wood-beam walking plow, $3,000; and a John Deere wagon seat in excellent original paint was $1,900.

Other farm-related advertising included a Case Power Farming Machinery sign, promoting J.I. Case Threshing Machine Co. and Grand Detour Plows, single-sided lithographed tin, 24 inches by 59 inches, the bottom lettered, “NOTICE We Want The Public To Know That Our Plows And Harrows Are NOT The Case Plows And Harrows Made By The J.I. Case Plow Works Co.,” in good condition, at $6,500.

An Oliver Farm Machinery embossed tin sign, single-sided, 45 inches by 67 inches, in very good condition, realized $5,000; Ford Tractor neon sign, oval over a rectangle, 45 inches by 73 inches, original porcelain, new can and neon, very good condition, $4,500; Minneapolis-Moline neon sign, MM logo, promoting “Service-Sales” and “Power & Machinery,” 48 inches by 66 inches, original porcelain with some touchup, new can and neon, $3,500; and an Oliver Chilled Plows sign, embossed lithographed tin, single-sided, showing two men and several plows outside a blacksmith shop, 33 inches by 24 inches, fair condition with small rust holes, sold for $3,000.

The petroliana market continued to show its unabated strength, with a Marathon single-sided porcelain sign depicting the company’s runner logo, 72 inches in diameter, in near-mint condition, bringing $4,600; Standard oval sign, double-sided porcelain, 5 feet by 7 feet, with its original porcelain boat and milk glass flame that went on top of the sign, plus iron bracket and lights, very good condition, $4,500; and a White Eagle Banner Gasoline sign, Ethyl Gasoline Corp., New York, cast-iron curbside stand, double-sided porcelain, 57 inches high, very good condition, was $3,300.

A selection of unusual weather vanes for use on lightning rods included one with a zinc sheep in its original gilt. It sold for $7,000. Chupp noted the sheep directional was made in three sizes. “This was the medium size, which is the hard one to find,” he said.

A weather vane depicting an early touring sedan, made by Kretzer of St. Louis, sold for $3,400; zinc bull by Miller, $1,700; and one of a copper ear of corn, 26 inches long overall, two bullet holes, also brought $1,700.

The Chupps are known for selling corn shellers. This time around, offerings included an early floor-model, hand-crank corn sheller, mostly wooden, having an 1824 patent assigned to L. Peck, that sold for $2,750; cast-iron, floor-model corn sheller and grinding machine, patented in 1894 by Le Grand Kniffen of Chicago, the catch drawer missing, $2,000; and a box-style, large-wheel corn sheller with a rare popcorn insert, 1874 patent date, not listed in Jim Moffett’s reference book on the subject, was $1,700.

Chupp said color, condition and stenciling affect the value of hand-crank corn shellers.

There were items for specialized collectors. Among the anvils, a 700-pound bridge anvil, 24 inches by 43 inches, sold for $4,500; cone bridge anvil, 253 pounds, $2,200; and a cone anvil, 153 pounds, was $1,000.

Buyers interested in hay items also had some variety to choose from, with a hay car and pulley made by J.B. Drake of Indianapolis, 1872 patent date, bringing $2,200, and a wooden-beam Hoosier Hay Carrier by Charles Fockler, Dubuque, Iowa, 1873 patent date, at $1,750.

Miscellaneous items, big and small, included a Pioneer Hybrid Seed Corn double-bubble clock in great condition at $1,200; Kenwood cast-iron, 20-gallon butcher kettle with stove and jacket, decorated with cows and ears of corn, $3,500; early horse-drawn Oliver sulky plow, original paint and stenciling, $3,750; Barlow two-row, horse-drawn corn planter with original paint and a cast-iron Barlow seat, $2,800; model of a ground-driven potato digger, wooden spoke wheels, original paint, 28 inches long, $3,500; and a salesman’s sample B.F. Avery & Sons walking plow, brass and walnut, 25 inches long, very good condition, was $4,000.

A hanging corn dryer from The Ward Mfg. Co. of Kalamazoo, Mich., 37 C-shaped holders for ears of corn mounted to two sides of a wooden holder, topped at $3,000; Woodmanse Wind Mills paper sign, framed, 30 inches by 13 inches, minor tears, $2,600; cast-iron large cutout Zenith wrench, closed hexagonal head on one end, three open heads on the other end, $1,700; and a hard-to-find concrete and cast-iron battleship windmill weight sold for $4,200.

Prices were boosted by strong Internet bidding. There was no buyer’s premium for floor buyers (as reflected in the prices), but online bidders paid an additional 15 percent.

Chupp Auctions & Real Estate will hold its next three-day sale on March 12-14. For more information, phone (574) 536-8005 or visit www.auctionzip.com and search for auctioneer ID 11841.