The Mile High Pedigree Comic Book Collection is probably the most famous and sought after collection in existence. These books have some of the highest grades, retain the greatest value, and bring record setting prices when offered for sale. Today we’ll look into the origins of this pedigree collection and where you can find them.

About the Mile High Pedigree Comic Book Collection

The Edgar Church or “Mile High” pedigree collection was assembled from the late 1930’s to the 1950’s. Mr. Church gathered almost every comic book published and stored them in his basement in large stacks. The location and method of storage was ideal. The cool, dry, Colorado air combined with the pressure in the stacks helped preserve the comic books in their original newsstand condition. Since the books were stacked in the order they were purchased many of the oldest books were the best preserved due to the weight of the stack!

The collection was purchased by Chuck Rozanski of Mile High Comics in Denver in 1977, hence the name. The books were purchased in bulk for one agreed upon price. Chuck slowly released them onto the market, afraid that such a large collection would have a negative affect on the price of these old comic books.

The Mile High/Edgar Church collection contains many of the highest graded comic books in existence. The sheer size, content and condition of the collection makes it the benchmark by which all other pedigrees are compared. When they are offered for sale they typically command 2x guide prices and up. Unfortunately, when the books are offered for sale they tend to vanish into private collections for years at a time.

I’ve included some Mile High / Edgar Church books for sale below. Take a look at these beautiful books and try using the Comics for Pennies Discount Buying System on them. Who knows, maybe you’ll score a one-of-a-kind pedigree for a discount!

Pedigree comic book collections are one of the most exciting parts of the comic book hobby. In this post we’ll talk about what they are, why they’re important and where to find them.

What’s a Pedigree Comic Book?

To become an accepted pedigree, a collection usually has three characteristics. These are a traceable origin, the quality of the books and the consistency of the collection.

The origin of the collection means that typically one person collected the comic books over a period of time. It could have been early in the history of comics (the Golden Age), or even later, typically the 1970’s (bronze age) being the newest books accepted into the group. One of the most famous collections, the Mile High Pedigree, was collected by one man, Edgar Church, from the late 1930’s to early 1950’s. He stored the books in his cool, dry basement in Colorado and they sat until discovered in 1977.

The quality of the books always enters into the acceptability equation. To qualify for pedigree status, the comics typically have to be in top condition. In the case of the Mile High books many of them are the highest quality, or highest graded, books in existence. Sometimes there are lower condition books, but this usually occurs in very large collections.

Finally we have the consistency or content of the collection. The Mile High Collection contained virtually every comic book published in the years the comics were stored. In other instances, such as the Denver Pedigree, only first issues were collected and stored. The collection could consist of particular years, genres, etc. Basically, there is a common thread that ties the collection together.

If a collection meets the three criteria above, there is a chance it will be accepted as a pedigree by the collecting public.

Why is a Pedigree Collection Important?

Perhaps the most important aspect of a pedigree collection is it captures and saves a piece of American history. When these collections are uncovered it’s like going back in time and finding the books on the newsstand. The smell of the ink and paper, the brilliant colors of the covers all add to the mystique.

From a collecting and investing point of view these collections are important because they bring several multiples of Guide when they are sold. They are unique, one of a kind books that are consistently hoarded in collections and infrequently offered for sale. In future posts I’ll show some of the sales prices and you’ll see what I mean.

Where to Find Pedigree Comic Books For Sale

Since these books are rare, you have to do some hunting. You can find them on E-bay, but the issues are sporadic. Major auction houses such as Heritage also offer them for sale. If you want to claim a book from a particular pedigree you have to take the time and search. Also, be ready to act if there is a specific book you want for sale because once it’s sold, they have a tendency to disappear into individual collections for years!