The Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market; 30 Years In The Running

NEW MILFORD — Every Sunday between April and early December a devoted group of antiques vendors from near and far make their way across Route 7 in the predawn hours to one of the largest and most popular weekly flea markets in the area. The Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market, with its humble beginning some 30 years ago, has grown into a highly respected and ever- expanding show.

The number of dealers varies from weekend to weekend and accordingly so does the selection of merchandise. A variety of factors regulates the number of dealers who make their way onto the field on any given weekend, weather being a main one, yet the field has room to accommodate almost 500 dealers and has more than 1,000 parking places for an eager public.

“The market started in 1975,” commented manager Greg Baecker, “and I took over in 1976. At that time we were setting dealers up on the front lawn of the house, usually about eight of them, and the spaces were $8 a spot.

“As other regional markets began to close down, more and more vendors made their way to the Elephant’s Trunk and soon the fields in back of the house, once leased to a farmer for haying, were being cut for exhibitor space. The market continued to expand, finally reaching its current configuration in early 1990.

“We still have two of our original vendors with us on a weekly basis – Doug Sinclair and John Perry,” said Mr Baecker. “Unfortunately we just this year lost two of our regulars including Newtown vendor Al Karcheski.”

When thinking back on the old days at the market, Mr Baecker fondly recalled: “There used to be a farmer down the road a little ways that had a lot of cattle. Every now and then some of the cows would get loose and they loved to come up to our fields. I can remember mornings when we arrived at 3 am to get ready for the market, that the first thing we had to do was somehow herd these cattle back down to their barn.”

With the farm long-since gone, when Mr Baecker and his crew arrive these days all they find is a long line of dealers patiently waiting admittance onto the field.

“We can handle 490 dealers,” said the promoter, “but on an average Sunday between May and October, we get around 300.” Last summer, the market filled to capacity on a couple different occasions and has come close this summer as well.

The “Trunk” was admission-free to buyers for many years, although with spiraling costs of labor, insurance and other amenities, and in an effort to keep booth rents in check, the market began charging admission in 1998.

Die-hard antiques shoppers are in line before daybreak and pay a premium of $20 to enter the show during setup at 5:45 am. Admission drops to a buck after 7 am, but it is still in time for serious buyers to do some good shopping.

The pace is quick and more often than not there are rumors of treasures, some of which are even confirmed. Virtually all of the regular shoppers have their own tales of glory — decorated stoneware jugs for $10, an early cobalt pontiled soda bottle for 50 cents, and then there was the fish weathervane that came off the field for “$300 a couple years back only to sell at a local auction for $7,500,” according to Mr Baecker. There was also a Seventeenth Century bible box that surfaced on the field that was ultimately consigned Hyde Park Auction with it selling at $11,200.

At least half of the vendors bring antiques with management roughly estimating that of the remaining half, 20 percent deal in collectibles and 30 percent in crafts and new merchandise.

The Sunday shows just before and just after Brimfield and holiday weekends are extremely popular. The furthest any dealer has reportedly traveled to the show is from Texas, claims the promoter, adding, “We also have one from Louisiana that regularly does the show.” They are both Brimfield exhibitors and they set up the Sunday before and after Brimfield week, he said.

Other dealers we have seen on the field have traveled from as far as Maine and there are even some Cape Cod dealers who make the trip to set up once or twice a month.

The Elephant’s Trunk is open annually from the first weekend of April through early December, with the exception of Easter Sunday.

This year the market will close down on December 11, barring an early season snow storm that leaves an accumulation, at which date the market will close for the year. For further information call 860-355-1448.

(This story first appeared in The Bee’s sister paper, Antiques and The Arts Weekly.)