I recently faced the unhappy decision of having to sell my insulators (for personal reasons). However, I couldn't really see myself leaving the hobby entirely.

"Then why not specialize," I was told. But what could I specialize in? Before the dealers and collectors came to buy my insulators, I sat back and took a good look at my collection. It was obvious what I had the most of -- amber and cobalt H.G.Co. and Hemingray signals.

I wondered if there would be enough varieties of ambers and cohorts to make a worth while display and collection. I didn't really know if I could build a good collection of just cobalts and ambers; but I decided to give it a try.

Now, after only a few weeks, I have seven different cohorts, ten different ambers, and two different purple H.G.Co. signals. I have reason to believe that there are at least eight varieties I don't yet have.

I have in my collection eight different embossing styles. I believe that there is at least one more. These embossing styles are:

1. H.G.CO. / PATENT MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICOAT (back) Comes in honey amber, yellow amber, orange amber, red-orange amber, brown-amber, and peacock cobalt blue, light amethyst, and deep royal purple. There are also varieties in green amber and lime green but I haven't yet added these to my collection.

(It might be noted here that I have never seen an insulator with this embossing in true cobalt blue color. However, the Hemingray Company sold these to its buyers as cobalts and so I call them cobalt.)

2. H G CO PATENT / MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICOAT (back) Note the lack of periods. Comes in purple.

3. H.G.CO. / PATENT MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICOAT (back) The word petticoat once said petticoat but an "o" was placed over "a", an "a" over the "t", and another "t" was added. Comes in peacock-cobalt blue. I believe there is possibly an amber embossed like this but haven't yet seen one.

4. H.G.CO. / PATENT MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICAT (back) I believe that there are some, a very few, which are embossed PETTICAT, but I haven't yet seen one.

5. HEMINGRAY MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICOAT (back) Comes in cobalt blue. I have yet to see an amber embossed like this, as every amber I've seen with the patent date has had the word PATENT in front of MAY: but I believe there are some.

6. HEMINGRAY / PATENT MAY 2 1893 (front) PETTICOAT (back) Cobalt blue, red amber, chocolate amber.

7. HEMINGRAY (front) NO 19 (back) Cobalt, red-amber

8. HEMINGRAY - 19 (front) MADE IN U.S.A. (back) Cobalt, yellow amber, orange amber. These have round drip points; where most of the others have sharp (or, at least, pointed) drip points.

9. HEMINGRAY MADE IN U.S.A. (front) NO 19 (back) Yellow amber, cobalt blue. These are slightly different shape than the other No. 19 signals as they look like a cross between a No. 19 and a No. 20 signal.

Counting the number of drip points will add more varieties to a collection of this type. While most varieties observed have had 37 drip points, a few have been discovered with 34, 39, 40, and 41 drip points. Some insulators have half a row of round drip points and have sharp drip points on the other side.

I have not gone into the green and green ambers yet, so there are probably a number of these varieties not mentioned.

I have never seen a cobalt, amber, or purple with the patent date that has had a comma between May 2 and 1893; but there is a distinct possibility of some.

The rarest insulator in this classification is the deep royal purple H.G. Co. signal. Not enough is known about how many of the others were made for me to say which of the rest is the rarest-but I'd say one embossed PETTICAT instead of PETTICOAT would also be quite rare.

I would not even attempt to place a value on any of them as I feel present prices on all of them are too low. From talking to linemen in the area where these items were found, I have found out that all of the ambers, purples, and cobalts have come down off the lines already. There are no more of them to be found. By late 1970 any cobalt or amber should be a very valuable insulator.

Even though the Hemingray company advertised red insulators for sale, I have never seen a true red signal. Both of the red-ambers I have are far more amber than red. The reddest insulator I have is an orange amber H.G.Co. which, when in the sunlight, shines almost red.

Condition has a lot to do with value in these colors. Very few ambers are mint, and even fewer cobalts and purples are mint.

I would be very much interested in hearing from collectors who have a H.G.Co. or Hemingray No. 19 shapes signal in a variety that I have not mentioned.

Also, I'd like to hear from collectors who could verify The existence of a cobalt, amber, or purple of which I have only Been able to theorize.

There is other Hemingray cobalt's, such as the N.A.T.CO. And other Hemingway amebas, but I sold these rather than add Them to my collection, because they clashed with the number 19 Shaped signal. But, then, maybe I just don't know what I'm missing? ?

I believe that as the insulator hobby grows, more and more Collectors will begin to specialize; as Greg Bickford, I, and others have done. If you decide to specialize, I suggest that you build a unique and individual collection. That is what I have tried to do.