Tailgate Antiques Show at Fiddlers Inn was a big success according to the promoter, Steve Jenkins. Held from Wednesday through Saturday, February 22-25, there were 195 dealers exhibiting in the rooms and on the grounds of the Fiddlers Inn Motel across the street from Gaylord’s Opryland Resort and Conference Center. This show has been a satellite to the Heart of Country Antiques Show for more than 20 years with dealers offering early American and country antiques from the East and Middle America.

This most recent show had statistics, according to Jenkins, which were “the best since the late 1990s.” He added, “We had all the rooms sold and about 15 outside dealers. Early buying and regular admissions were all at new highs.”

Dealers were echoing his comments, including a Maryland dealer of sporting antiques who said it was the “best show here in years. I had to go back to the trailer for more stuff and I wasn’t going home, I have another show and I don’t have enough stuff!” A Connecticut dealer sold several very valuable small antiques including a Delaware Valley child’s chair and some early porcelain.

Baltimore’s American Stars specializes in early American woodenware such as firkins, pails and butter churns. One churn was from about 1775-1800 and in excellent original condition with some of its original paint still visible.

Marilyn Draper Carr, Barrington Ill., trades as Thistle and offers ordinary objects shown for their art value; a granite mill wheel showing its variegated shades of gray and white; the cutting wheels and fork tines of a cultivating harrow. She had a winnowing basket, used to thrash the kernels of wheat from the stalks and a collage of ferns framed into a full wall of natural art.

Monkton Mill Antiques is from Hillsboro, Md., and finds early furniture from its Eastern Shore home area and from the Shenandoah Valley. At this show furniture was selling very well, including a blanket chest with highly detailed chip and knife carved decorations painted as was typical for the early Pennsylvania pieces.

Linda Rubley, Limington, Maine

Furniture was selling very well throughout the show. SteveJenkins was a dealer long before he was this show’s promoter and hestill puts on a display for the week. This time his offeringsincluded a Tennessee hunt board with three drawers in its originalsurface, a French footed Hepplewhite small bachelor’s chest and apie safe. He also sold a variety of small antique accessories.Boylston, Mass., dealers Ken Ware and Kathy Hanlon, Ware HouseAntiques were offering a large collection as well. There was acorner cupboard in pine, a maple high boy, a small hutch table andchairs for it. They also brought a collection of primitive pieces.

“Fiddlers,” as the show is known, has a reputation as the show where dealers buy. They come in on the set up day and as early buyers for premium entry fees just to peruse the inventories of exhibiting dealers. Exhibitors frequently make arrangements to have an extra person with them just so that they can unload, sell and shop simultaneously. An antique furniture dealer from New England said he “bought four pieces in the first 20 minutes of the set up day and sold two of them while at the show. It was good that I did for I was really full coming in, but not to worry, I sold plenty enough to get home.” A California couple who are dealers come to the show twice each year just to shop, not to exhibit; another from Spotsylvania County, Va., does the same. Both said they more than paid for the trip in the first hour with their purchases.

From Fitzwilliam, N.H., Dennis Berard, Dennis and Dad, has been doing the show for so many years he has regular customers for his early dishes, mostly English porcelain. Laura Schoene and Robert Trites, Red Rock, N.Y., sold a good deal of furniture. Even so, they bought so much here and then they agreed to help a friend haul back some things that Trites said he expected to rent a trailer in addition to their box truck for the ride home.

When asked, Dee Wilhelm from Grand Blanc, Mich., could not remember how long she and her husband had been doing the show. She collects many small boxes, early lighting and small furniture pieces.

Dee Wilhelm, Grand Blanc, Mich.

Not all the dealers have been doing the show for so manyyears. Linda Rubley from Limington, Maine, and Gerry Slack, Dublin,N.H., were there for the first time. From a second floor exhibitthey were selling country furniture and early porcelain andstoneware. Illinoisan Jack Vye was selling some muzzle loadingguns; Linda and Ralph Miller brought a large vanload of primitivefurniture. Deborah Fisher, Lebanon, Ohio, was there with acollection of furniture and folk art. Her prized piece was an earlyhobbyhorse in very good condition, painted with rockers for a smallchild.

Dealers were quite pleased with their results for the week, both selling and buying. Their only displeasure was that on Friday night’s dealer dinner Steve Jenkins announced somewhat apologetically that dates for the show next winter would be the last week of January. As this show is a tailgate to the Heart show at Opryland USA Hotel and Resort across the street, he said he “did not control the dates but had to follow whatever that show did.”

Within the week, however, Jenkins changed that announcement as the Heart show was able to get dates more acceptable to everyone. The dates for next winter’s show will be Wednesday through Sunday, February 28-March 3.

This date problem has come up before and there were conflicting notices about this fall’s shows; Fiddlers will be October 25-28. Bookings from the dealers are coming in quickly as there will not be a show at Opryland at that time. Interested dealers should contact the promoter at 317-598-0012. More information is available on the website, www.jenkinsshows.com.