Tom Pirozzoli, Goshen, N.H.
Review And Photos By Tom O’Hara
The Attic offered good early pickings.
NEW LONDON, N.H. — Some things in New England just continue and the New London Antique Show and Sale on the Green seems to be one of those wonderful traditions that continues with grace and charm for the 50th consecutive year. Volunteers and many returning dealers together worked to have a total of 40 exhibitors here on a beautiful summer Saturday, July 23, for just about six hours. The day was shortened by the threat of afternoon storms, but it was still long enough to be a success in raising some revenue for the town’s garden club and most of the exhibiting dealers.
The dealers, most not traveling from afar, were offering a limited supply of early American household antique furnishings, decorative accessories that were easy to carry and show for their time and space for this quick show. The early pack-out did not hurt attendance or enthusiasm for the show.
Tom Pirozzoli, Goshen, N.H., was here with the latest additions to his inventory, concentrating on American country home furnishings from the Eighteenth Century. He was offering a New England bakers table, red washed base with a scrubbed top, one leaf only in very good condition; an early iron Palladian window frame, several blanket boxes, including one in blue milk paint; and a wall-hung wooden dryer.
Joyce Cotter, coming from Concord, N.H., was selling late Nineteenth Century dishes from Europe. She also had a 100-year-old crazy quilt that may have been a raffle quilt made by a group of quilters and raffled at an event for charity. It was made of all woolens and silks and showed excellent workmanship and condition.
Peter Lombardi, Parsonsfield, Maine
Bonita Story, Meredith, N.H., sold fine jewelry with help from a couple generations of her family. Also included in her collection were some textiles and quilts. Lots and lots of silver smalls such as thimbles and match cases, tea cozies and demitasse spoons were the principal stock for Kathleen Zink of Ashby, Mass.
Peter Lombardi came down from Parsonsfield, Maine, with interesting and somewhat curious objects. Most of his merchandise has some bold paint on it and in many cases it is advertising but not always. For example there was the Motor Tune-Up sign touting an oil product, farmers’ fruit and vegetable signs, and a small manikin selling something else. There were other things as well, such as the painted form, a wooden truck in red, painted sap buckets and a sign reading “duck,” which could have been advertising or a warning.
Deb Gott and Ken March, Biddeford, Maine, offered antique Persian rugs along with an Edwardian sunroom wicker furniture ensemble.
Lesley Lorant came from Glenham, N.Y., with a collection of smalls and furniture but got a lot of interest in a sign in raised wooden letters, “WINE.”
Crows Feet Antiques, Colebrook, N.H.
Local to the show is New London’s own Two Sides of the River. Dealer Mike Pheffer concentrates on Nineteenth Century oak and maple furniture. His sales at this show are always good with his furniture first and the miniature chests he specializes in trading well.
Several big tents on the green were filled with dealers offering many little antiques. Natalie Werner of 1843 House in Springfield, Mass., was selling Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century kitchenware, while Second Tyme Around, Alexandria, N.H., traded in oil lamps.
Kay Baker, Amherst, Mass., had a very recent buying trip to England where she found many small early antiques that were selling well.
The New London Garden Club, as sponsor and beneficiary of this event, also has a large booth called The Attic, where members sell items that were donated. Sales in this booth were brisk, with good antiques such as an Eighteenth Century tap table selling for $350 and an English tall case clock going for $400.
The show is an annual affair; look for it again next July on the third weekend.
For additional information, www.newlondongardenclub.org.
