Richard A. LaVigné (brown suit jacket) talks with two interested customers about the round table in front of him. On the far left, a New York-made ship model with intact rigging and sails, which caught this reporter’s eye. The Galleries at Knollwood, Lee, Mass.

Review & Onsite Photos by Kiersten Busch

KILLINGWORTH, CONN. — As fall finally descends on New England, the plethora of summertime outdoor events — festivals, fairs, shows, concerts and the like — taking place almost every weekend across the region are now fading into a fond and collective distant memory. Replacing those, however, are other ways to spend time indoors, such as the Connecticut River Valley Antiques Show and Historic Preservation Fair, back for its second year under the stewardship of the Haddam Historical Society and Goosefare Antiques & Promotions.

With a relocation to the Haddam-Killingworth Intermediate/Middle School, the show, which spanned October 11-12, was all geared up to feature 30 of “the Northeast’s superb antiques dealers offering a varied range of antiques and arts that include furniture, ceramics, jewelry, decorative, fine, folk arts and much more,” according to the show’s informational pamphlet, which all attendees received upon arrival.

The Historic Preservation Fair, on the other hand, featured “programming curated for the owners of historic homes, with exhibits and presentations by experts including stonework, window restoration, sign painters, historic lighting and metal work.” Two featured speakers gave lectures over the course of the weekend, staring with local realtor Tanya Bottaro’s “Buying & Selling Antique Homes: A Fireside Chat with Tanya Bottaro, The Huscher Team at REAL” on October 11, followed by “Preservation Connecticut Homeowners’ Starter Guide to Historic Preservation” on October 12, a talk led by Mike Forino, the director of Preservation & Partnerships at Preservation Connecticut.

Showrunners John and Elizabeth DeSimone, who are Goosefare Antiques, showed us this decorative chair with Spanish feet that was carved with stars and compasses, as one of their booth highlights. Saco, Maine.

John and Elizabeth DeSimone of Goosefare Antiques were the show managers, but also manned a booth themselves over the weekend. John pointed out a decorated and carved chair to us as the major highlight of their collection at the moment, saying, “This is probably the nicest chair we’ve had.” What made it so unique was its Spanish feet and hand carved star and compass design. John was also happy to show off a Nineteenth Century American sailor-made miniature chest with a whale bone inlay. “It has whale bone knobs in diamond- and circle-patterned inlay, and beautiful turned legs,” he explained. The Saco, Maine-based dealers also showed off a circa 1725 Queen Anne chest-on-frame possibly made in Rhode Island, as well as an Eighteenth Century Boston Chippendale mahogany four-drawer chest with ball-and-claw feet.

After the show, John shared a story about the aforementioned circa 1725 chest-on-frame that stood in the center of their booth. “We had a gentleman come in and look at the chest all over. He then pulled me aside and asked, ‘Where did you get the chest?’ I told him I had to think about it, and then he asked, ‘Did you get it at Eldred’s [Auction Gallery, East Dennis, Mass.]?’ and I realized that I did. The gentlemen responded, “Well, I gave it to them!’ He is from Haddam, I think he’s an architect and owns multiple houses. He drove up to Eldred’s, gave it to them, then we bought it and now it’s back in Haddam.”

Another familiar face was Lisa McAllister, who had just recently shown at the York, PA Antiques Show & Sale on September 19-20. Unlike her many years at York, this was her first year at the CT River Valley Show. “I used to do the show at the Armory,” she explained, “but this is my first time here. It’s been very wonderful so far. The promoters are excellent.” On display in the center of McAllister’s booth was an item that was also in her booth at York, and something that she was very happy to show off — a “rare” dry sink from Pennsylvania. “I’ve never seen a dry sink like this before, and I don’t expect to see another. I bought it at a Pennsylvania dealer’s house.” She was also proud to have a large painting by Worcester, Mass., artist William Bernis, on which she commented, “The size is fantastic, as is the skill level.”

It was Lisa McAllister’s (not pictured) first time at the CT River Valley Antiques Show. She commented that it had been “wonderful so far!” Clear Spring, Md.

It was already busy in Gregory Lovell’s booth just after the show’s opening, as fellow dealer Richard Mori (Richard Mori Books) was purchasing a copy of Maine Quilts: 250 Years of Comfort and Community by Laureen A. LaBar from Lovell’s assistant, Richard Jones, when we stopped by. Lovell, who owns Gregory Lovell Antiques in Hyde Park, Mass., has been doing Goosefare shows for more than 30 years, including both iterations of this show. One of his specialties is creamware, of which he had a variety, including some yellow French-made plates from the Napoleonic period. “The two plates show French officers,” Lovell explained, and translated a French phrase on the plates depicting a military commander that read, “Before you capture someone, one must address the person.”

Lovell also showed us a British-made creamware jug, which featured multiple depictions of British soldiers fighting Napoleon’s army after his invasion of Portugal in 1809. His favorite illustration on the jug showed an English officer arresting a French soldier, who was offering him a bag of money and his watch to prevent his arrest.

After the show, Lovell offered some commentary on his experience. “I did quite well at the show and was very pleased with the results. I thought that there was a good-sized crowd, given the weather prediction and conditions and the more remote location of the show.” He continued, “The load-in was easy and the promoters definitely put a lot of work into making sure things went as smoothly as possible. I noticed also that the porters were especially accommodating when it came to having to wait for some of the dealers who had complex booths and were consequently slower at being ready to reload their vehicles. I’ll do it again next year.”

Some Napoleonic creamware from Gregory Lovell Antiques, Hyde Park, Mass. The jug was British made, while the two yellow plates were French.

Chris Socher and his wife, Karen, are Witt’s End Antiques, out of Wallkill, N.Y. Chris shared that the pair has been dealing at Goosefare shows for 15-20 years, “but it could be even longer, maybe 30 years!” They specialize in everything “across the board, but we started with primitives and early American, Hudson Valley, material. We switched up because we wanted to appeal to the younger people. Shows are relaxing now, so we bring more decorative items from the Eighteenth to Twentieth Century. Eclectic is better!” When asked what his favorite piece in the booth was, Chris chose a wooden carved and painted feeding finback whale by Wick Ahrens. “He was a good friend of ours for about 12 years. He had a shop in Weston, Vt., and he’d been mentored by Clark Voorhees.” The Socher’s also offered a carving of a fox by one of Ahrens’ protegees, Wendy Lichtensteiger.

“We have to be diverse now, that’s the game nowadays!” said Tucker Frey of Woodbury, Conn., as we spoke to him about the array of offerings in his booth. Frey’s merchandise mostly focused on his specialty, Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Americana, but he also offered folk art, rugs, Delft and Staffordshire creamware, as well as a Twentieth Century Mickey Mouse miniature place setting — and more! His favorite item, however, was a 1750 Chippendale cherrywood tabletop desk, which he professed had a “well-molded base.”

Walking into the booth of Captain’s Quarters felt exactly as the name implies. The nautical art and antiques business is owned by Jeffery M. Cobb, who was excited to show us the nautical paintings and wares expertly set up around his booth. “We call these ‘mantiques,’” he joked, as he led us to the main event: Solon Francis Montecello Badger’s oil on canvas “The Schooner Young Brothers,” which he had priced at $6,200. “I could see it placed over a stone fireplace in some board room, or in a library where someone could enjoy a glass of bourbon,” Cobb said of the 48-by-36-inch framed painting, which took up the majority of his main display wall.

“Don’t miss the best booth!” said Jeff Cobb, owner of Captain’s Quarters, Amherst, Mass. The large painting in the middle of his booth, “The Schooner Young Brothers” by Solon Francis Montecello Badger, was the standout highlight.

“We had a great show,” Cobb shared via email after the show’s close. “As you know, we specialize in nautical antiques and historic whaling memorabilia. We were very excited to do a show in Connecticut, close to Mystic Seaport and New London, once centers of that trade. We sold a number of antique whaling implements including an 8-foot-high flensing iron, a really nice antique American flag pennant that would have hung from the mast of a ship and some sailor-made folk art, among other things.”

The last booth we stopped in for the day was that of Richard Mori, the owner of Richard Mori Books in Nashua, N.H. Mori was excited to show off a copy of The Little Showman’s Series No. 2, a chromolithographic pop-up book made for children by McLoughlin Brothers (New York) around 1890. He also brought with him an unauthorized first American edition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, as well as authorized first editions with and without their dust jackets.

Published around 1890, this copy of The Little Showman’s Series No. 2 by the McLoughlin Brothers (New York), was “more unusual” than their other chromolithographic books for children because it was a pop-up, shared Richard Mori, Richard Mori Books, Nashua, N.H.

After the sale via phone — as he was setting up for yet another show — Mori informed us, “The Haddam Historical Society and Goosefare had some of the best sponsorship I’ve ever seen in my 40 years. What they did in terms of bringing support to the show was amazing. They brought people who did home repairs and improvements of a historical nature, and three or four other historical groups; it was amazing to see that! It’s very important.” He continued, “Every show has its plusses and minuses. John and Liz do a great job in promoting. I wasn’t financially successful, but I am very happy with the things I bought and the people I met. I hope that they have it again next year.”

With that being said, John DeSimone shared that while there is no official date set yet, he is in discussion with The Haddam Historical Society about show improvements and hopes to set a date in the coming months for next year’s show. “In general, things didn’t go as good as we’d hoped,” he shared. “On Saturday, we gave out over 100 passes to return, but I think because of the weather on Sunday, many people chose to stay home. Every time we have a show, we always reassess afterwards and see what can be improved. We’re discussing whether having the show on a holiday weekend is a good choice or not; last year it was the weekend after. But overall, we were pleased with the show, the dealers, the quality and the facility.”

For information, 800-641-6908 or www.goosefareantiques.com or www.haddamhistory.org.