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"There was buried treasure in the backyard just waiting to be dug up and the family knew it. So one day the granddaughter decided to excavate what her grandmother, an escapee from an oppressive Russian tsarist rule, put in the dirt years ago. Turns out it was $57,000 worth of Russian gold rubles."

That's just one story Colleen Rivera likes to tell. Witnessing such impressive finds is part of her job as a show manager for the Ohio Valley Gold & Silver Refinery's traveling roadshow.

The Springfield, Ill.-based company is in North Branch through Friday this week to buy precious metals, jewelry, historical artifacts, antiques and other collectibles.

When someone brings in an item, The Ohio Valley Refinery & Roadshow evaluates it, makes an offer, then writes out a check sending that person home with some extra cash.  "Our job is to find buyers for items.  We're the middle man.  We try to find someone in that market who is interested," said Jeramy Weese, also a show manager for the Ohio Valley Refinery & Roadshow. Weese said that when an individual brings in an item, the buyers will enter the details into their online system which connects with over 10,000 collectors.  Items can range from coin collections to vintage guitars and everything in between.  "If we can get someone to generate an offer, they agree to the terms and we give them a check on the spot.  However, if more than one collector is interested, the offer can go higher," explains Weese.

David Ford, a buyer for the company, said he enjoys traveling to different towns each week and finding new and interesting items.  Just a few weeks back he had a woman come in who had bought a coin from the casino she worked at for a dollar the night before.  She walked out that morning with a check for $50.  So search through your closets and bring down your items to the AmericInn in North Branch 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Friday this week.  Admission is free.

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