CANAAN, CONN. — Elizabeth (Lib) Helen (Salembier) Mankin, a noted antiques dealer in fine and decorative arts, died Thursday, December 20, 2018, at The Geer, Canaan, Conn. Mrs Mankin, who was due to celebrate her 100th birthday on January, 23, 2019, was born in Englewood, N.J., in 1919. She was the daughter of Elizabeth (Corrigan) Salembier (1890–1966) and Rene Robert Salembier (1882–1942), and spent her childhood in Englewood, N.J., and Kennebunkport, Maine. She was married to Guy M. Mankin (1920–1997), a noted engineer, from 1947 until his death.

Mrs. Mankin graduated from The Dwight School, Englewood, N.J., Eden Hall Academy of the Sacred Heart, Philadelphia, and Finch College, New York City. As a veteran of World War II, she served in the American Red Cross, stationed in Eye, Suffolk County, England with the 490th Bombardment Group. After the war, she worked for Stair and Company antiques in New York City. Once married, the couple moved to South Kent, Conn., in 1953, where they lived in a series of historic houses that they took great pleasure in renovating. Kent provided an ideal setting to raise their family and to live out their lives. They were both extraordinary cooks and gardeners and loved the rural beauty of Litchfield County. They would pass on all of these interests — art and architecture, food and cooking and farming and gardening — to their five children.

A consummate wife and mother, she also ran a highly successful antiques business, the Side Door Antiques in South Kent, Conn., and later Elizabeth Mankin Antiques in Kent, Conn. Her husband shared a passion for art and antiques, and together, they collected in a variety of areas, including New England Eighteenth Century furniture, American folk art and textiles, British ceramics and American paintings. She was a noted participant in the many antiques shows and flea markets organized by Russell Carrell and participated in the annual Hartford Connecticut Antiques Show. Mrs Mankin loved the coast of Maine, where she spent nearly every summer of her life. She was also devoted to golden retrievers and ran a kennel for many years, where she raised beautiful puppies and kept many as beloved household pets. In her final years, she was inseparable from her much-loved rescue labrador retriever, Brulee, as they lived out their final years together. Elizabeth was a devoted member of the Sacred Heart Church in Kent, Conn., where she taught church school for many years.

Mrs Mankin is survived by her five children, Guy Mark Mankin, of Kent, Conn.; Elizabeth Mankin Kornhauser and her husband, Stephen Kornhauser, of New York City, and their children, Robert Kornhauser and Sara Kornhauser; John William Mankin and his partner, Jayne Martin, of Kent, Conn., and his children, Julia Mankin and David Mankin; Anne Masury and her husband, David Masury, of Kittery Point, Maine, and their children, Jack Masury, Kate Masury and Ned Masury; and Andrew Mankin and his wife, Nancy Dutton, of Great Barrington, Mass.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for contributions to The Little Guild Animal Shelter, West Cornwall, Conn.