I have a complete set of the 15th edition of Britannica as well as a set of Britannica Great Books of the Western World. I also have a set of 1970 Compton's Encyclopedias. How do I evaluate the worth?
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Many people have old books they think are valuable and would like to sell. Most old dictionaries, references etc., have very little value, a few dollars at most. Encyclopedias dated after 1923 are essentially worthless but crafters may be interested for the old pictures. Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc., receive donations of tons of old encyclopedias, dictionaries and reference books but send them to recycling centers or dumps as they cannot use or sell them.
You can check online for old book collectors, on EBay, Craigs List and other retail sites for possibilities. Everything is now online and updated constantly so old books are just that-old.
Thank you for your reply. It was what I suspected!
They are not worth much. Books only have value if they are complete and antique (100 + years old)
Any reference book, encyclopedia or dictionary that isn't over 100+ years old won't bring much of a value. Unfortunately, because of the internet everything is online these days. Furthermore, the information is updated regularly. That means the information in the books is outdated and people aren't interested.
It isn't a good idea to list them on eBay or another auction site because shipping these books is more expensive than the price the buyer will pay. Therefore, you only have one choice and that is to list them on Craig's list for around #30. You can no longer donate them to schools , libraries, or even donation centers. They have to many and don't want anymore.
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