All this and music too! The Trunk Band serenades shoppers with bluegrass tunes and American folk standards near the entrance of the show. Pictured are, from left, Joe Proc (percussion), Frank Infurchia (vocals/acoustic guitar) and Richard Hawthorn (upright bass).
Review and Photos by W.A. Demers
NEW MILFORD, CONN. — Now in its 48th season, The Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market, just off Route 7, got under way on a soggy Sunday, September 29. It is a scene of second-hand splendor every Sunday from about late April to mid-December, open 8 am to 2 pm, in all kinds of weather, excepting monsoonal rains and snow. Roy Young presides over it all, unable to say just how many vendors fill spots on the fields as it varies from week to week. He has always had an affection for the camaraderie of visitors and vendors that surface there every Sunday. “We’re here usually up until the week before Christmas,” he said, standing at the vendor gate as regulars from his “community” pass by, offering greetings of “Hey, Roy” and “Good morning, Roy.” With nearly 50 years under its belt, the flea market’s denizens are sometimes children of the market’s pioneer dealers from 40 years ago.
The market has evolved from an early invitation from Roy and Ginny Young to set up and sell their merchandise at 490 Danbury Road. Over the nearly five decades, the number of vendors has steadily risen from a handful to several hundred that show up every Sunday to offer everything from vintage clothing, antiques and collectibles to what may euphemistically be characterized as yard sale fare. There’s a gauntlet of food trucks — fried chicken, pizza, hot dogs, lemonade, donuts and breakfast food to fuel shoppers and dealers — plus a group of enterprising musicians with their tip jar, playing a mix of bluegrass tunes and American folk standards who call themselves, The Trunk Band.
The Elephant’s Trunk began with a “build it and they will come” motto, having arisen from an early attempt by the Youngs to attract people to their clothing store by having local folks conduct tag sales on their front lawn. That business waxed as the clothing store’s business waned and soon the field in back of the Youngs’ farmhouse accepted the growing number of vendors. The Elephant’s Trunk officially opened in 1976.
Todd Shamock is one of those second-generation “Trunkers,” who said he started here as a young kid in 1980. From Meriden, Conn., he came with a truckload of merch, including the turn-of-the-century terrestrial globe by Rand-McNally with ball and claw feet he is holding.
There’s a rubric for entry. The retail crowd is allowed in at 8 am for $3 per person. Early buyers, usually other dealers and pickers, are allowed to shop the field beginning at 5:30 am for $20; another round of early buying begins at 7 am for $10 per person, and admission stops promptly at 2 pm when dealers begin packing up for a 3 pm departure.
On this particular Sunday, the threat of rain persisted throughout the market’s early hours. By 9 am, what began as a humid mist turned into palpable raindrops and vendors who were not blessed with pop-up canopies began covering up their merchandise with tarps. At least one dealer with a dark sense of humor and a table full of old tools and mechanical parts, justified leaving the tools uncovered because they were already rusted. Umbrellas among the shopping crowd popped open and the market continued.
Under the cover of a large red market umbrella, Craig Andrews of the Birdhouse Brokerage offered barnwood birdhouses for the home and garden, with his wife Christa. A 20-year veteran, he said he sells about 3,000 birdhouses per year, all of which he makes in his home workshop out of recycled barn boards. One of his sources for barnwood is in Goshen, N.Y., while he also gets rough cut pieces from Staatsburgh, N.Y.
Craig Andrews, Birdhouse Brokerage, is a 20-year veteran, selling barnwood birdhouses and collectibles for the home and garden with his wife Christa. He said he sells about 3,000 of the birdhouses per year, all of which he makes in his Upstate New York workshop out of recycled barn boards.
His workshop is in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York, and the birdhouses, in a variety of forms, are handcrafted reclaimed barnwood, rescued from aging barns found in the New York’s scenic Hudson Valley. “Using reclaimed wood,” Andrews said, “ensures that each birdhouse has its own one-of-a-kind personality. Some customers find them so charming that instead of putting them outside, they use them indoors as décor accents.”
With just a month to go before Halloween, several vendors were featuring spooky decorations, plastic and wooden pumpkins, scary figures and the like. One dealer, however, had a table full of Christmas décor — ornaments, miniature trees, wreaths and more. Alish Starkie of Tom’s Garage, Newington, Conn., explained, “I’m all sold out of Halloween.”
From New Milford, Bill Missonelli, the owner of the Mohawk Barrel Co., was covering both bases with handmade trees and pumpkins crafted from vines. His main offering is a wide variety of barrels, some 400 to pick from.
Like Brimfield, the market runs mostly on cash, although purchasing platforms like Venmo and PayPal are beginning to make headway. Because of this, John Arturi of New Milford rarely misses a Sunday. He is better known the “ATM Man,” with the one machine on the field that other dealers rely on to grease the wheels of commerce. Arturi also specializes in “yard art” — zany figures crafted from scraps of metal and wood and painted in eye-catching colors.
Better known as the “ATM Man,” John Arturi of New Milford also specializes in “yard art,” zany figures crafted from scraps of metal and wood and painted in eye-catching colors. Snoopy is the hot dog among the group, made in Laredo, Texas. Arturi, a retired IBM executive, is a Sunday regular as many of the other vendors rely on his ATM machine.
Both veteran dealers and tyros coexist here, some setting up for the first time, others recalling the 1970s when as teenagers they wouldn’t miss a Sunday, exploring the Trunk for great finds. One such vendor was Todd Shamock, still sporting the youthful backwards baseball cap. From Meriden, Conn., the second-generation “Trunker,” said he started here as a young kid in 1980. His box truck was laden with some great pieces, including a pair of barrister bookcases that had already sold by mid-morning.
There was not a lot of furniture. One of the few brown furniture dealers on the field was Jim Bradshaw of Greenwich, Conn. He was showing a writing desk with interesting carved graffiti on the underside of the writing surface, a blanket chest with cedar lining and a sheet music file cabinet with inlay on the door.
It was only his 12th time showing at the Trunk, said New Milford vendor David Lewis, who added that his collection comprises “pieces that attract my eye.” In addition to the choice examples he showed on top of vintage luggage, he was offering milk glass and Depression glass that glowed under UV light.
Available from an anonymous dealer from New Fairfield, Conn., was a late 1940s record player, which the dealer believed was probably sold by a suitcase company — perhaps Swiss. Interestingly, the machine had no discreet volume control, the size of the needle determining how loudly it played.
Available from a dealer from New Fairfield, Conn., was this late 1940s record player, which he believed was probably sold by a suitcase company, perhaps Swiss. Interestingly, the machine had no discreet volume control, the size of the needle determining how loudly it played. The two receptacles to the left of the turntable held needles.
Passing by Jim O’Connell’s space, a lineup of three rough-looking old Farmall tractor cowlings caught one’s eye. The Ballston Spa, N.Y., dealer, when asked what somebody might do with them, replied “Well, I see them as a pair on either side of a driveway entrance with lighting.” He also showed a big bucksaw that had been repurposed into a coatrack with old doorknobs instead of hooks. “Kinder on clothing,” he said. A shopper, Jim Tholen of Goshen, N.Y., stopped by and purchased a pair of rusty tilling discs.
Tom Sidlean of Fairfield, Conn., said he specializes in antique and vintage bicycles. He was offering an antique high wheel bike he had acquired at a Pennsylvania show. In his van he had a 1953 Schwinn Phantom.
A relatively new addition to the weekly event is Trunk Band, which sets up near the entrance and serenades shoppers with bluegrass tunes and American folk standards. Personnel change from week to week but the core members are Joe Proc on percussion, Frank Infurchia on acoustic guitar and vocalist, along with Richard Hawthorn playing the upright bass.
No pets are allowed at the market, but it welcomes “Treasure Hunters, Antiques Collectors, Farmers, Foodies, Up-cyclers, Deal Seekers and Entrepreneurs of all kinds,” according to its website.
There are farmers on the field who bring fresh produce as late as early November. On this Sunday, Brown Dog Farm, organic growers from Gaylordsville, Conn., had tables burgeoning with heirloom tomatoes, garlic, greens and vegetables.
The Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market is at 490 Danbury Road. For information, 860-355-1448 or www.etflea.com.
