Travel While You Collect

Want a collection that requires a lot of travel? Try finding all of the states in old sets of souvenirs. Small ashtrays shaped like states sold at highway rest stops 40 years ago could be assembled into a large U.S. map. Tiny state license plates were keychain tags distributed by the Disabled Veterans of America from the 1940s into the ’70s. Salt and pepper sets were decorated with the name of each state. So were shot glasses. Lots of fun and inexpensive, but they’re not very likely to be sold for a profit.