Mary Campbell, Moriches, N.Y.

Review and Photos by Tom O’Hara

MANCHESTER, CONN. – For 55 years there has been a Manchester Antiques and Collectibles Show conducted at the very beginning of spring in the Second Congregational Church in this town about 20 miles east of Hartford. This year, Friday and Saturday, March 24 and 25, were the chosen days for the gathering of lovers of antiques and collectibles, and the buyers came in droves. This is a petite show, only 38 exhibitors set up in all the nooks and crannies the church has to offer, but it was filled to capacity with dealers offering wonderful small antiques and early collectibles. According to Marjorie Martin, this year’s show manager, the attendance was higher than last year; perhaps, she thought, because there was less competition from St Patrick’s Day parades as there has been in recent years.

Without St Patrick’s Day parade conflicts, the attendance was up from last year.

Marion Scully was on the upper floor with her unique collection of silver pieces. Sales were good for the longtime dealer who lives near Enfield, Conn. She was offering unusual items including butter picks (they look like tiny cork screws), lemon forks, unusual serving pieces and much more.

Jane Wlochowski’s collection was more than picked over; it was hit pretty hard, according to her postshow report. The Manchester, Conn., dealer said she had great fun with more than 30 advertising boxes going out the door, about a dozen still banks bought, most of her friction cars and trucks racing away and whirligigs spinning off to new homes.

There was jewelry and an array of small antiques at Jamie Shenkman’s display. From Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., she brought no furniture except for the displays she set up. Her sales were good, including several Victorian-era paintings, a beveled mirror in its original 100-plus-year-old frame, along with some of the sterling silver jewelry from Mexico.

Kay Baker, from Amherst, Mass., was one of the first exhibitors shoppers would see as they entered the big room, and she began selling quickly. Moving out were pieces of her blue willow, some ink wells and other pewter, early small tools and ephemera.

And there was more: The House of Merritt, Marlborough, Conn., was selling vintage Christmas decorations; Bob Benoit, Windsor, Conn., offered a large assortment of Sandwich glass tiebacks and drawer pulls; Gerry Thompson, Storrs, Conn., began selling some of her antique blown glass Christmas ornaments as soon as the show opened; and Richard Grace, Chicopee, Mass., brought a supply of Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century American country home accessories and furniture. His space on the stage was roomy enough to set up furniture, which he did to good effect.

This was a great show for buying, with great variety and depth across a variety of eclectic selections. It is an annual benefit for the church, and it will run again next year – similar time, same location. For more information, 860-649-2863.