James M. Kilvington, Greenville, Del.
Review and Photos by R. Scudder Smith
YORK, PENN. – The second of four antiques shows at the York Fairgrounds, the Greater York Antiques Show opened on Saturday, May 6, and continued through Sunday, May 7, at Memorial Hall East. This event was under the management of Bob Bockius of Mitchell Displays, Inc.
The show ran at the start of Brimfield, resulting in some of the regulars at York not attending, but going to the week full of Brimfield shows. About 45 dealers were at York with the usual mix of Pennsylvania pieces, folk art, ceramics, fabrics, holiday items and cast iron pieces. Some of the interesting objects are listed below.
Bob Bockius, show manager
There is no way to miss the booth of Greg K. Kramer & Co., Robesonia, Penn., or should we say, “the room of Greg Kramer,” as he is just inside the entrance to the show and shares a large space with a small eating area next to the food vendor. “This is the year of the animals,” Greg said, noting, “I was looking at things at home and our inventory and decided to bring a grouping of them to the show.” One of the booth walls was devoted to a collection of snakes, large and small, some of roots and some carved, and several cast iron eagles were positioned about the display. A pair of terracotta recumbent sheep were positioned to greet people coming into the show, and just around a corner was a large cast iron seated lion. A wood carved and painted turkey took up one corner, shared with a rearing polychrome horse and a large duck carving. And, as usual, Greg had more than his share of redware and stoneware pottery, painted furniture and carved folk art figures.
A pastel portrait of a seated young girl holding a sprig of flowers was in the middle of the back wall of the booth by The Norwoods’ Spirit of America, Timonium, Md. The dealers also offered a trade sign advertising Ice Cream, and a theorem on velvet, circa 1820-40, showed a basket of flowers.
Round cutting boards, a couple with straight handles and one with a well-defined lollipop handle, hung in the booth of Cheryl Mackley Antiques of Red Lion, Penn. One corner of the booth was dedicated to Santa figures, with one example, about 2 feet tall, dressed in a red and white coat, blue pants and black boots, towering over five smaller figures in various colored outfits.
There was no missing the booth of Kelly Kinzle of New Oxford, Penn., as this time Kelly picked a bright green for his walls, a color that was soon referred to as Kelly Green. He noted that “things stand out very well against that color, especially the furniture.” He also mentioned that “the color grows on you and I just might paint some of the rooms at home the same way.” Showing well against the green was a cigar store Indian attributed to Thomas V. Brooks, New York City, circa 1850. The figure was of pine, original paint, and measuring 70 inches tall. Standing against the back wall was a Lady Liberty weathervane by a New York maker, circa 1880, copper with traces of gilding and paint. It measured 39 inches high and the provenance listed Gary Cole. Attracting attention at the front of the booth was an Angel Gabriel weathervane by Ira Hess, foreman at Central Pennsylvania Lumber Co., probably for a church in Columbia or Lycoming County, Penn. It is of pine, copper, iron and bronze leaf, with some traces of paint and gold leaf. An impressive piece of folk art, it measures 42 inches long and 26 inches high.
Holden Antiques, Sherman, Conn. & Naples, Fla.
“It’s time to get rid of my truck,” Richard “Smitty” Axtell told us after relating troubles he had with his vehicle on the way to York. In the end he had to return to Deposit, N.Y., unload most of the furniture back into his shop, and come to the show with mostly smalls and a few small pieces of furniture. In spite of the travel troubles, he presented an interesting booth and reported some nice sales. Among the pieces in the booth were a yellow painted candle box, circa 1800, with one drawer and a lollipop backboard and a brightly painted pagoda spool tree dated circa 1860. A selection of wood carved pieces included butter stamps and scoops, and a circa 1836 small cabinet with drawers and doors was signed on the back by Dwight Perkins of New York State.
An Eighteenth Century shoe foot hutch table in pine and maple, 67 inches long, was at the front of the booth of Holden Antiques, Sherman, Conn., and Naples, Fla. The table was partly covered by a penny rug, and a small-size Nineteenth Century folky rocking horse was also displayed there. Among the pieces of furniture was an early Nineteenth Century four-drawer painted chest with smoke decorated drawer fronts. It was found in Missouri and near it was a carved circus lion on stand in the original park paint
Four stick puppets with painted wood carved heads and hands were watching over the booth of As Good As Old, Lower Gwynedd, Penn., and another carved piece was Skinflint’s trade sign with a design carved into the head of an oak wine cask. It was signed and dated “Vogel 74.”
A large and colorful Parcheesi board hung on the back wall in the booth of Jewett-Berdan, Newcastle, Maine, and it had a bright red sold tag on it very shortly after the show opened. A round, graphic game wheel took up some wall space, as did a large braided rug depicting a colorful pot of flowers, circa 1920s. In addition to a paint decorated six-board chest, a four-drawer chest with backsplash and high French feet, paint decorated, circa 1835, was offered.
Steve Smoot Antiques & Navajo Textiles, Lancaster, Penn., had a booth dominated by Navajo blankets and other textiles, along with a showcase filled with baskets and pots. A sign shaped like the front of a house, with painted door and windows and an overhang roof, advertised “Tourists,” and a set of six Pennsylvania painted Windsor side chairs took up a portion of the left side of the booth. For those interested in miniature furniture, Steve offered a pair of armchairs and bench, all woven rush and in good condition.
Alice & Art Booth, Wayne, N.J.
A blue painted bucket bench was loaded with stoneware pieces, including five blue-decorated pitchers of various sizes on the top shelf, with the lower shelf filled with decorated crocks and jars, in the booth of Keith and Dian Fryling Antiques, Green Lane, Penn. Displayed on the back wall was a hooked rug depicting two dogs, facing each other, with red bows around the necks and a red ball between them.
A Humpty Dumpty circus tent sheltered every clown and animal needed to assemble a complete circus, displayed in the booth of Steven F. Still Antiques, Manheim, Penn. And the variety of objects in the glass showcase was endless, including a sailor whirligig, a small early hour glass, a large tin coffee pot, miniature pieces of stoneware, cast iron folks, paint decorated wooden pail with bail handle, a heart-shaped cast iron trivet and several sizes of early lamps. It would take a few more paragraphs if all the objects were listed.
A couple of late cancellations resulted in some vacant booths, and John Rogers Antiques of New London, N.H., was pleased to fill them. “Since I have a house in the area I was pleased to have the additional space and managed to fill two booths in addition to my regular one,” John said. Known for his collection of butter stamps, he showed two racks of them in one booth and in the next booth, on an early one-board bench, he placed three large wooden bowls that were filled to the point of overflow with more butter stamps. The added space allowed for more furniture, including a New England chair table dating from the Eighteenth Century, with a pine top measuring 56 inches in diameter and a maple base. The piece showed remnants of the original paint. Six yellow paint decorated Sheraton side chairs were lined up against the back wall of one of his extra booths.
A Connecticut tall chest resting on a dovetailed bracket base, cherry stain and original brasses, was in the display of Hanes & Ruskin of Old Lyme, Conn. Positioned at the end of the booth was a blue painted braced back Windsor armchair, circa 1800, that was attributed to Ebenezer Tracy.
A Pennsylvania berry quilt took up most of the back wall at Tex Johnson & Son Antiques, Adamstown, Penn. This piece, in excellent condition, had nine designs within a red and green border. At the front of the booth was a large table with two drawers, zinc-covered top measuring 41½ by 49½ inches, and green painted turned legs.
Robert Conrad Antiques of Yeagertown, Penn., showed a patriotic flag holder in the form of a red, white and blue shield with a centered picture of Lincoln, and a miniature folk art desk, circa 1900, with 15 applied carved hearts. A blue painted dry sink, 48½ inches wide, was dated circa 1840.
The next Greater York Antiques Show, under the management of Bob Bockius, will be on Friday and Saturday, November 3-4, at the York Fairgrounds. For additional information, www.greateryorkantiqueshows.com. Please note that management has moved the days of the show back to Friday and Saturday.
