Patrons at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
BUTLER TWP — Residents had the chance to enter a past world that lives on through antiques like 19th century furniture, art displays created by painters from that time and rare coins and pins.
The 74th annual antiques show and sale, which took place Friday, March 20, through Sunday, March 22, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham on Pittsburgh Road in Butler Township, showcased antiques dating to the early 1800s.
The show and sale, hosted by the Intermediate League of Butler, consisted of 37 antiques dealers, many of whom have their own shops, who brought their collections to show off and sell.
“It’s something a lot of us have done for years. I’ve done this for 20 years, and I’ve always enjoyed antiques, and we get to show all of this to everyone,” Jay Ritter, a Pittsburgh-based antiques seller, said. “My shop has 30 different dealers in it, and we deal things from primitives, in the 1800s, all the way up to the ’60s and ’70s with vintage items.”
Dealers selling at the show collect a wide range of antiques. While some are from the past 50 to 60 years, others are “primitives,” from well into the 1800s.
“A lot of the stuff you’ll find here is very old, it’s very unique,” Toni Fennick, one of the show’s organizers, said.
Ritter’s items for sale included model trains, Lalique crystals, furniture, knickknacks, clothing and art deco-era works.
“It’s nice to listen to the customers, because they always tell us stories of they may have had a similar item, or their mother or grandmother had it,” Ritter said. “There’s always nice connections.”
Ken Jenereski, a Butler native, said he has been selling antiques for roughly 50 years. His items included old-time advertising signs, gas and oil signs and decorated stonewear.
“We’ve got a little array of everything, and that’s what makes the business good, because it’s a variety of all kinds,” Jenereski said.
Jenereski said he has bought and sold items like furniture dating as far back as the late 1780s.
“People like to decorate with the stuff. Especially signs, you can decorate the whole house with them. A lot of guys that have muscle cars will decorate their garage with a gas pump and start adding more signs. But all the other stuff people collect, they put up in their house, and they look at it, and it brings them joy.”
Among the other items for people to browse were paintings created from the early 1800s to the 1970s, World War II-era posters promoting the military and buying of war bonds, old purses, old advertising signs, decorative plates and glassware, rifles that were built in the 1910s, old typewriters and record players and jewelry from over 100 years ago held in glass boxes and delicately cared for.
“Typically I’ll try and do absolutely nothing to them,” said Bryce Harshburger, an antique dealer. “Maybe I’ll rewire a lamp or something, but we want to preserve these things as much as possible.”
King’s Antiques sells a hand-painted French potpourri ewer from 1898 at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
A Fort Duquesne map from 1754 at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
WW II-era motivational artwork at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
1940s World War II propaganda posters on display at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Miniature ceramics at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Patrons at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Fine jewelry at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Antique candy boxes at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
An antique Singer sewing machine for sale at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
An 18th-century hobby horse on sale by the Linden Tree Antiques at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Classic children’s toys at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Bargain costume jewelry at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Motivational artwork at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
Equine bookends at the Intermediate League of Butler’s annual antique show and sale on Saturday, March 21, at Tesla’s Ramada by Wyndham in Butler Township. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
JJ LaBella
