On a September day in 2021, auctioneer Joseph Bodnar and his crew drove into a quiet neighborhood in Long Branch, N.J., and walked up to the door to pick up items that Mark Conover Sr. had spent his lifetime collecting. Although Bodnar had seen the collection, his crew had no idea what they were about to see. As they descended the stairs into the basement, they were amazed at what was in front of them. Every wall had been custom built with shelving to house thousands of milk bottles. Each and every New Jersey dairy bottle was perfectly placed in alphabetical order from A to Z, lining every wall, even under the stairs. This was Marks Museum and his lifetimes work. Conover Sr. had passed away in February 2021 and left his legacy collection to his children. He had started collecting as a child when a neighbor in his Atlantic Highlands home began telling him the history of the town. His interest was piqued, and he began to dig for old bottles in an area his neighbor had told him about. That was all it took. A lifetime love was born. He would find old bottles and then go to the local library to research them. He loved finding information on where they came from. As the years passed, he focused more on going to trade shows, where he became friends with other collectors, and when the internet came along, he could buy, sell and trade bottles all over the country. The collection did not solely focus on dairy and milk bottles of all shapes and sizes. It encompasses every aspect of dairies. He had an extremely large collection of bottle caps in every shape, size and composition created. He also had binders of ephemera relating to New Jersey dairies, including calendars dating back to the turn of the 20th century, receipts, photos, postcards, and much more. There are tools used at dairies, wax bottles, patches and buttons. This is truly the history of New Jersey dairies. Over 4,500 bottles will be offered, most having their original tops from that dairy as well as paper sleeves. There are very few duplicates in this collection with some color variations and error bottles. All bottles will be in group lots of 10 and are still in the order of how Conover Sr. placed them on his shelves Grab some cookies and milk and log in to Bodnars website. Bidding is open online, and the live sale will take place on Wednesday and Thursday, April 27 and 28, starting at 11 a.m. each day with a live broadcast online. Bidding will be offered on Bodnars website, Liveauctioneers and Invaluable. An in-person preview will be held Tuesday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., by appointment in Monmouth Junction, N.J. Local pickup will be available, and most items will ship with Bodnars in-house shipping department. For additional information, call toll-free 866-349-7378 or visit www.bodnarsauction.com.