Team

About Jack Simpson

Antique Extravaganza's Interview

Tell us about your appraisal experience, qualifications and companies affiliated with or owned.

I'm a retired service member & Department of Defense (DOD) civilian that has traveled most of the world. I have had a lot of experience in foreign military sales having to identify a wide array of items to do feasibility studies for cost of repair or replacement. Presently, I am an auctioneer and owner of Jack Simpson Auction where I prepare appraisals for living and deceased estates, warehouse, bankruptcy, taxed values and property appraisals to many different organizations. I also held monthly antiques and collectible auctions. I am also called on by many auctioneers for my experience and advice. I am a graduate of Carolina Auction Academy.

What is your specific appraisal expertise and specialty?

I do not hold myself as an expert in just one field because as an auctioneer I have to be versatile in many areas to be able to tell if an item is real or a reproduction. I have considerable experience with written signatures. Coming from my world travel, one of my strongest skills is being able to identify unusual things that many other appraisers may not have come in contact.

Describe one or two of the most unique items you have encountered as an appraiser.

I have had the honor to auction a Japanese original painting that had a mountain scene that was made by placing various types and colors of precious stones to make the scene. The most unique items have come from places in time like trench art in past wars such as ammunition and doctor bloodletting tools from confederate soldiers in civil war times.

Where were you born, where did grew up? Tell us about your life and how you spend your life now.

I was born in Fitzgerald, GA. Fitzgerald is where the Blue and Gray Museum is located because it was the neutral meeting place for the Union and Confederate armies where they conducted final negotiations at the end of the Civil War. I was raised as a farmer in livestock and vegetables. Many of things I have learned about came from grist mills work, managing grocery stores and working as a livestock estimator. I spent most of my life all over the world as a service member and DOD civilian. Now I live outside the well-known antiques town of Cameron, NC and ran an auction business in Spring Lake, NC until I became full time caretaker for my wife.

Tell us about your family?

I am happily married to a wonder lady named Gervaye which everybody always ask how long we have been married and I always respond not long enough. We have raised eight children: five boys, three girls and in that mix one set of twin boys, many grand kids and many great grand kids. We are bird lovers but all animals are special to us and we do have a dog named Lucky. I'm just a plain person that is rich in family.

What is your passion as an appraiser?

I'm always excited that people bring me unique items that most cannot identify and I have the pleasure to tell them about it. I see the most unusual and strange items. I often say my work is like paying the game of "stump the auctioneer." I have had several items I did not know at first but I'm pretty hard to fool.

Why are you excited about doing Antique Extravaganza event?

I must on a daily event do two things: learn something new each day and help someone else. When I get the chance to do fundraisers like Antique Extravaganza and Ft Bragg NC fund raiser I'm honored. I have participated in three charity auctions for St Jude Kids Hospital and I do fundraisers for churches in my area that I live in as well.