Elephant’s Trunk Opens For 2006 Season

NEW MILFORD — Marking the 31st year in business, the popular Elephant’s Trunk Country Flea Market opened for business for the remainder for the 2006 season on Sunday, April 2. Greg Baecker, promoter of the weekly event, was ready for business bright and early as he and his staff began letting the line of 375 dealers onto the field in the predawn hours at 4:15 am.

As dealers on the field busied themselves setting up, a long line of shoppers anxiously waited in the dark for the start of early buying at 5:45 ($20). As soon as the crowd hit the field, transactions were reportedly taking place at a fast and furious pace. Another good sized crowd awaited the regular opening at 7 am when the price of admission drops to $1. Attendance for the day was estimated to be just under 3,000 people.

“There is this pent up excitement on opening day, it is a release for a lot of people. I have had people come up to me and say ‘Thank God you are open again, I haven’t had anything to do on Sundays all winter long,”’ said Mr Baecker.

The market’s humble beginnings took place on the front lawn of the shop/house that now serves as the Trunk’s offices in 1975 with eight dealers setting up there on Sundays. A couple years later, the market had expanded to the point that a portion of the rear acreage was utilized. The market continued to grow and Mr Baecker fondly recalled the market’s progression into the popular event that it is today.

“There were times when we would fill the space we had available and more dealers would show up. We used to raise alfalfa in the back part of the fields, so I would tell them to wait right there. I would go get the lawn mower and cut a spot for them on the edge of the alfalfa field,” he said.

The entire field is now used for dealer space, which can accommodate more than 450 dealers, along with an even larger parking area for shoppers. While some of the regular dealers have reserved spots in the front of the market, the rest of the field is just a jumble of stuff that can range from high quality antiques to tube socks.

Enticing tales of discovered treasures are always surfacing at the Elephant’s Trunk Country Flea Market; some are even substantiated. The market, on Route 7, will remain open every Sunday until the second week of December, including Easter Sunday.