The George Meade figurine being auctioned at the American Civil War Wax Museum in Gettysburg sold for $1,100, far more than I could justify (or afford) paying. But I was glad to see Meade fetched a higher value than any of the other generals in his booth. George Armstrong Custer sold for $900 and Philip Sheridan–a thorn in the real Meade’s side–sold for a mere $500.

My wife and I hit a couple of brewpubs last night (Battlefield Brew Works and the new ABC in the Gateway complex off Route 15) so we were moving a tad slowly this morning and missed the auction of the first Robert E. Lee and General Grant. (Yes, the wax museum had more than one Lee.) So I can’t say what they sold for. But of all the figures we saw auctioned, Meade scored the highest, beating out Stonewall Jackson ($500), Nathan Bedford Forrest ($675), John Singleton Mosby ($600), Jubal Early ($450), George Pickett ($700), and James Longstreet ($750). The Lee figure from the museum’s front hallway tied with Meade, but the Old Goggle-eyed Snapping Turtle did beat the Jesus figure from the Jackson diorama. The Son of God went for $1,000.

The auction appeared to draw a pretty big crowd and it was standing-room only when we arrived around 9:15. We left when it became apparent that even the little stuff was selling for more than we were prepared to pay. The sign for the Northern Leaders booth, the one with Meade, went for $250–about 10 times what I was prepared to pay.

I did bid on one reproduction rifle but was immediately outbid. Although I would have liked to come home with something, my bank account feels a sense of relief.