MARCELLUS, N.Y. — Longtime antiques dealer Douglas J. Blanchard died on January 20, two years after being diagnosed with ALS.
Remembered fondly by all who met him when he exhibited at antiques shows in central and western New York as well as Ludlow, Vt., and other New England venues, Doug was a regular shopper at such geographically disparate shows as Madison-Bouckville (N.Y.) and the Christie show in Ontario, Canada.
Born in Baldwinsville, N.Y., he graduated from Baldwinsville High School and St Lawrence University in 1950 and 1954, respectively. Following two years of service in the US Army, he began a 40-year career with a major insurance company while simultaneously developing an interest in and building an encyclopedic knowledge of antiques.
Customers appreciated the broad range his inventory encompassed, his friendly pricing and generous but firm discounting. They took particular delight in “discovering” objects in his booth he had marked “free.” The tactic, Doug said, with a wink, was “a great conversation starter.”
His cottage on Charleston Lake, Ontario, financed in part by profits from his antiques business, served as a family gathering place and he treasured time spent there as well as on trips to the Maritimes and, later, to his grandchildren’s sporting events.
Always youthful and dapper in appearance, he was rakishly handsome and an old-school gentleman with a dry, wry wit. Convivial and with an extensive friendship network developed well before the Internet, Doug took delight in clipping and mailing newspaper articles to friends who he thought would find interest in their content.
Doug is survived by his wife of 60 years, Beverly, his sons Thomas, David and William and his daughter Susan, along with eight grandchildren.
The family notes that “in lieu of flowers or memorial donations, friends can honor him by extending a kindness to someone the world has forgotten. You won’t have to look far.”
—Bruce A. Austin, Rochester, N.Y
