For vendors who don’t want to commit to both weekend days, show manager Ruth Ann Wilkinson offered space around the circa 1880 cast iron fountain made by J.L. Mott Iron Works, Bronx, N.Y., shown behind the closest white tent.

Review & Onsite Photos by Madelia Hickman Ring

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. — The 49th Antiques in Schoharie Fall show, the second annual antiques show fundraiser held by the Schoharie Colonial Heritage Association, returned to the Schoharie Valley Railroad complex September 27-28, with 64 booths set up in the 1875 Borden Creamery Building, the Mill Building, the Weigh Station and grassy lawns throughout the complex. Good weather marked the event, a relief to those dealers who had to withstand soggy weather for the spring show earlier this year.

Show manager Ruth Ann Wilkinson told Antiques and The Arts Weekly that three dealers were participating in the event for the first time: Nancy Vorel, Stacey Dailey and Dan and Lynda Dickson.

Vorel, who was set up in the Creamery Building, used to shop the show with her late husband, Harold Peter “Pete” Curran before he passed away; the couple split their time between Sanibel Island, Fla., and Esperance, N.Y., and Vorel was selling a train painting by Chet Gould, some of her father’s tools, a Nantucket basket, a Native American ceremonial board and some bottle cap art, among a wide variety of “other things.”

Baskets, a Native American ceremonial board, bottle cap art and a hooked bug with first-time exhibitor Nancy Vorel.

Across from Vorel, Bill “Postcard Bill” Johnson, had nearly 15,000 vintage postcards, divided by subject matter. For this show, he brings mostly New York State, holiday and topical-themed examples. He noted he’d recently acquired an album of cat postcards but had not yet had time to go through them. While we were in his booth, he closed the sale of a circa 1940s Thermoid Fan Belts advertising hanger.

Next to Johnson, Joy Pullman has been doing the Schoharie shows for “a long time.” She had a good selection of vintage accessories, holiday ornaments and more “smalls” — glass and ceramics than she usually brings. When we asked her what was noteworthy, she pointed out a small, framed print by John White that dated to the early 1900s. The print depicted a woman with a large pot and was titled “Pot of Basil”; according to the story as Pullman recounted it, the woman had put the remains of her cheating husband — whose name was Basil — in the pot.

Jim Loudon is from Oneonta, N.Y., and is both an author and artist, as well as train historian. His drawings and paintings were the subject of notecards and small works in mats were spread out on a table on the lawn, alongside books he’d written, including The Box Car Settlement, Oneonta’s Lost Neighborhood, Leatherstocking Rails: A History of Railroading Along the Upper Susquehanna, The Little Red Caboose and The Oneonta Roundhouse.

Jim Loudon, right, and Marie Iannotti, with his drawings and train books.

Mary Barkman, outside one of the dealer tents, had a Blue Onion platter she was fielding a lot of questions on as we passed through her booth. Other wares that piqued our interest were a selection of vintage car manuals and some contemporary Halloween ornaments made with decorative gourds.

Inside the dealer tent, Glen and Millie Wiegand, who are Happy Dog Ceramics out of Cobleskill, N.Y., brought a large variety of his contemporary pottery pieces. According to his artist’s statement, he enjoys whimsical shapes and bright colors, taking inspiration for his dog and cat bowls from the dogs and cats in his family. Also on offer was a good selection of blue-and-white spatterware pieces, which Millie said were “very popular at this show.” The Wiegands have been selling at the show for three years.

The largest indoor venue at the show is the Mill Building, with space for 27 vendors. Given that this is a country show, with an emphasis on Country Americana, the Mill Building is an ideal space; the uneven plank floors and exposed beam ceilings create an environment where country antiques “just make sense” as we overheard one shopper say. Sharing space at the North end were Fred and Patty Heisler on one side and Ann VanDervort on the other. Country antiques and primitives were on offer with the Heisler’s, who sold early on a tavern table while their smalls attracted a lot of interest from the beginning.

Fred and Patty Heisler found an early buyer for the table at the front of this photo.

Vandervort was equally busy, with people examining her vintage and antique jewelry, glass, porcelain, textiles, wooden ware, baskets and small pieces of furniture throughout the weekend; she transacted sales immediately.

Stepping through a doorway in the Mill Building, one happened upon the booths of Jim and Mara Kerr on one side and Mark Wheaton on the other. Several red “sold” tags were visible in Wheaton’s booth, including a black-painted cast iron horse head hitching post top, a white-painted stand with three leaves, an arrow-form weathervane and a cobalt-decorated stoneware crock with a high collar that was unsigned.

The Kerrs are experts in Ironstone ceramics and laid out a large selection, arranged on shelves under the window. Some Flow Blue china, silver plate, paper ephemera and a small country cabinet were among their early sales.

Brisk sales were seen in Allan Brice’s booth. His large booth accommodated a good quantity of case pieces and tables and he’d sold a farm table, a two-drawer stand, a large blanket chest and a slant-lid table-top desk by the time we stopped by his booth.

Allan Boice had found buyers for several small pieces of furniture within an hour of the show opening.

“So far, I’ve spent more than I’ve sold, but it’s been great show so far,” he told us, noting he always buys and sells well at the event.

One of the nicest paintings at the show was with Michael Herkus, from Palmyra, N.Y. He brought a small Dutch landscape signed and dated “H. Sporer 1802” in an ebonized frame.

Nancy Douglas was just back from the York Antiques show the previous weekend; she said it had been “A feast for the eyes” and “a very successful” show. She was sharing space with Warren Broderick, an expert and author on early American pottery. He brought a large selection of it to the show and was busy discussing its merits with potential buyers.

Feathered Nest Antiques, under the watchful eye of Maureen Poulin, bills itself as “unique, antique, vintage chic décor.” Easily meeting that mandate was a seven-piece yellow Blendo beverage set with a lucite tray and a late Eighteenth or early Nineteenth Century blanket chest later decorated with an Adam and Eve scene. For those looking for vintage Christmas ornaments, they had several angels, Santa figures and Christmas trees.

Feathered Nest Antiques showed this Eighteenth Century one-drawer blanket chest with later paint decoration featuring Adam and Eve.

An iron chandelier and Mission style oak stool were among Richard Cuddeback’s early sales. Across from him, Leslie and Jim Hudson were busy tallying sales slips as we came through, including one for a blue-painted cabinet. A centerpiece of their booth was a circular farm table that was offered with four chairs; a set of Farberware Country Life china laid out on top of the table was sold separately.

A lowered area off the Mill Building’s main room was the perfect place for Dan and Lynda Dickson, of Lisbon, Ohio, who were already planning a visit to the area for a wedding the week of October 4-5 and reached out to Ruth Ann Wilkinson to see if she had space for them at the show.

As first time dealers, they brought a little bit of everything, with a colorful starburst quilt they thought was from the 1920s, and a circa 1870s coverlet Dan said they’d acquired on the drive from Ohio that he had not yet had a chance to research.

Also new to the show was Earlville, N.Y., dealer Stacey Dailey, proprietor of The Primitive House. Her business card noted “Simple goods from the past,” “Original painted surfaces” and “Scrub board antiques.” Her booth was packed with shoppers.

The Primitive House, owned by new vendor Stacey Dailey, was so mobbed with shoppers we could not get a clear photo of her but trust us, she was busy checking shoppers out behind the pillar.

Jim Brooks, Catnap Books, usually brings a selection of local-history interest and ephemera and this show was no different. A large photo album acquired from a Nineteenth Century farmhouse in Jewett, N.Y., had photos of Schoharie and Green counties; it was displayed alongside Nineteenth Century bank ledgers from Capital Region banks. First edition novels and vintage magazines were also plentiful.

Bob Mock and Lou Leatso are Bob-A-Lou’s and they’ve been in the Weigh Station for several years. Red “sold” tags festooned a few things in their booth, including a green-painted cabinet, chandelier, farm table, large cupboard and lamp.

The Spring Antiques Show will return to the Schoharie Central School April 11-12. For further information, www.schoharieheritage.org.