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The Mid Atlantic Antiques Market

by Erin Kyle

Saturday afternoon, promoter Sims Rogers was smiling. The first day of her annual fall Mid Atlantic Antiques Market, held October 27 and 28, 2001, had exceeded expectations. The gate was as high as past shows, and the dealers seemed to be pleased.

The Mid Atlantic Antiques Market is held twice a year at the Howard County Fairgrounds in West Friendship, Maryland. This fall a hundred dealers filled the main exhibition hall with mixed expectations. Typically, the show is described by many as "a strong event," "a good average show," and "always consistent." But with the economy in such a fragile state, would people show up? Would they be buying? "We did nine thousand dollars on Saturday, which is just terrific," beamed Ken Zippel of Country Corner Antiques, Bowie, Maryland. "This is the first show we have done since September eleventh, and we were really apprehensive. We didn't think we would do very well, but we have had tremendous traffic."

Unlike the Nashville and Atlantic City shows, which are known to draw a lot of fly-in traffic, the people who attend the Mid Atlantic are from the surrounding Baltimore-D.C. area. It was a beautiful, crisp fall weekend to take a drive. "This show draws clients that I don't get at my other shows," said Darwin D. Bearley of Akron, Ohio. "They have a different attitude about buying." Bearley was hoping to do as well as he did at last spring's show. "I ended up doing better," he said.

Many dealers also gauge the show on their sales during setup. "This is an important show because the dealer can sell and buy," said Ben Scherer of Blue Lion Antiques, Williamsburg, Virginia. If the dealers are buying, then the show has potential, and if they aren't—well, Bob Lutz of Greenwich, New Jersey, explained the outcome: "In the past, most of our sales occurred during the early buyers when many dealers from all over come and buy, and when the general public entered, our sales were practically nonexistent. This is exactly what happened this time except that very few dealers came during early buying, and as a result our sales were zip."

Leslie A. Quinn of Summer Hill Antiques, Brooklandville, Maryland, experienced the opposite effect. "I had four strong sales during setup, which is a good sign. I went on to have sixty more sales on Saturday. Then another ten or so on Sunday, but I have stopped counting."

Once thought of as a primarily country show, Mid Atlantic has become more diverse in its selections. "This has been the most colorful show," said Judy M. Welton of Crazy Mountain Trading Company, Queenstown, Maryland. "All of us could walk a block of this show and spend twenty thousand."

Well then, come along and let's try.

Starting in Welton's booth, among collectibles and folk art, we find pack baskets for $295. Across the walkway, in the booth of Cathy Smith of Arnold, Maryland, hangs a colorful U.S. Air Force quilt for $1000. Next up is the booth of Country Corner Antiques, Bowie, Maryland, where we see some early clothes pegs for $10, cookie cutters for $35, and an 1875 sampler for $3000. Patricia Keener Antiques, Westminster, Maryland, tempts us with a circa 1800 English corner cupboard with original wallpaper for $1200. Oh, and look at this charming circa 1915 miniature replica of a German bakery, priced at $2700 in the booth of Pete's Pickins, Kingsville, Maryland.

Walk this way to the booth of Graham, Inc., Silver Spring, Maryland, where there is a black walnut drop-leaf table for $1350 accompanied by a set of eight black walnut armchairs for $3600. One can't miss the striking hand-crafted model of the paddlewheel Dorchester displayed outside the booth of Maryland dealer Dennis Napolitan, husband of Sims Rogers, for $4500. Enter the booth of Blue Lion Antiques, Williamsburg, Virginia, to find various pieces of primitives, tools, and Americana, including a 19th-century eagle door knocker in cast bronze for $145.

Lighting the booth of Harmonie House Antiques, Harmony, Pennsylvania, was a glass lamp with elk motif, circa 1875, for $985. Enter the booth of Mary Sparger Antiques, Mt. Airy, North Carolina, and find rest on a walnut bed with acorn finials for $895. Finally, let's have a seat on one of three Irving & Casson porch club chairs in the booth of Cottage & Camp, Hudson, New York, $2100 for the set.

We did it, spent $20,000, and there is still Sunday.

In 1999, promoter Sims Rogers decided to change the show from a one-day Saturday show to a two-day weekend show. "I think we are beginning to see a serious need for the two days," explained Rogers. "In order to sell the higher-priced items you have to give the buyers a chance to think about it." She also believes it helps attract new collectors. "The two days gives them time to learn and think about what they are going to buy."

Dealers have mixed feelings about the weekend show. Some feel they need both days to reach their sales goal. "This show takes time," said Jeff Bridgman of Jeff R. Bridgman Antiques, York County, Pennsylvania. "I am halfway to where I want to be," he said on Saturday, "but it is still early."

For some who travel to do the show, the two days are just an added expense. "With the economy the way it is these days, I think more dealers would like to see one-day shows again," said Darwin D. Bearley. "It would cut expenses, and God knows we could all stand that."

Although Sunday brought sales for some, it unfortunately brought great loss for one dealer. When Kathy and Bruce Shelton of Shelton Gallery & Fine Jewelry, Nashville, Tennessee, returned to their booth Sunday morning, they found they had been robbed. "We came in, and we saw a big hole on the wall," recalled Kathy Shelton. The hole was the space once occupied by a painting of a Napoleonic officer by French painter Carle Vernet (1758-1836). The Sheltons valued the painting at $15,000.

"I started looking around, but they took the labels too. So at first I didn't know what was missing," recalled Kathy Shelton. As Sunday progressed, they began to realize their losses and tried to understand what had occurred between when they left Saturday afternoon and returned Sunday morning.

"[Saturday] we had gotten all of our jewelry out and left around 5:30 latest. We looked down the aisle and didn't see anyone. But they were in here," said Kathy Shelton. "It could have been anyone who had been in our booth who saw and picked out the seven most expensive items, the most unusual."

The seven items taken included the Vernet painting; an 18th-century French sterling silver over brass crucifix that stands about 24 inches tall; a coin silver scenic creamer, A.E. Warner (Baltimore), value $1600; an Edwardian cobalt blue Lenox china pitcher with sterling silver overlay, value $2500; a sterling silver covered sugar bowl from a five-piece Gorham tea service, value $350/400; a 1918 sterling silver Brooklyn Billiards Association trophy, value $1250/1500; and a 1912 sterling silver over bronze yachting trophy, value $2000/2500.

How the thieves struck after the show closed is still a mystery. "We use the same security method as the Pier show," said Sims Rogers. "In fifteen years of doing shows, thirty-eight shows in this building, this has never happened." Rogers and her staff do a thorough sweep of the building after the show closes, and she and her husband sleep in the building overnight. "It had to have happened while we were in here."

Rogers distributed a packet containing photographs and descriptions to all of the dealers at the show and canvassed the local area shops the weekend following the show. "I feel just awful," said Rogers. "The dealers are like my children; I am here to take care of them."

Kathy Shelton agrees. "All I can say is, a dealer should have the right to expect that their merchandise will not be taken out of their booth overnight. It is a manager's responsibility to protect their exhibitors."

The Sheltons filed a report with the local police department and posted descriptions of the missing items on the stolen art and antiques page of M.A.D.'s Web site (www.maineantiquedigest.com), but the items have yet to be recovered. If you have any information about the theft or the items listed above, contact the Howard County Police in Maryland at (410) 313-3200, case #01-097809.

Because of the theft, Sims Rogers was not smiling at the close of the show on Sunday, although based on the overall performance of the show, she had reason to. "Many, many dealers have come to me and told me they had an excellent show," said Rogers.

A cobbler's bench, a mule post, maple sugar molds, redware, a sawbuck table, jelly cupboards, mirrors, yellowware, furniture of all sizes and prices are just a few of the items that were sold. "People are out buying," said Carol Dozier of American Country Antiques and Samplers, St. Michaels, Maryland. "I think most people had a good show."

The spring Mid Atlantic Antiques Market will be held the weekend of March 23 and 24, 2002. For more information, call Sims Rogers at (410) 228-8858.