E.J. Noble Sponsors Antiques In The Park

GOUVERNEUR - Clayton A. Weatherup turned a round, cast-iron item in his hands to examine the worn manufacturer's stamp on its side at his booth in the Village Park Saturday. The item is just one of the many mysteries he's encountered in his years of buying and selling antiques.

"I don't know what it is, and no one else does, either," he said as he pulled at the handle of a small cup-shaped piece fitted inside it. The item looks like a mechanical joint of some kind, but Mr. Weatherup said he can't place its use.

"Every now and then we get something that we don't know what it is," said his wife, Myra B. "It's always interesting to hear what people think it is."

The town of Gouverneur couple was among about a dozen vendors of antiques and collectibles at the 17th Antiques in the Park event to benefit the E.J. Noble Hospital Foundation. They've been buying and selling antiques as a hobby for the last two decades, and have been a fixture at the foundation's annual fundraiser since 1996.

"It keeps us active," Mrs. Weatherup said.

A dealer doesn't always have to know what an item is or how it works to make a sale, said fellow vendor Harris O. Brown, owner of Brown Village Inn Antiques, Fair Haven. People often just buy pieces that interest them, he said.

"I just came across a piece about a week ago that turned out to be a wind velocity meter," Mr. Brown said. "Everyone was stopping to look at it, and nobody knew what it was. Then curiosity got the best of one person and they bought it."

Mr. Brown and his wife, Sara A., have made the 150-mile trip to Gouverneur for the last six years to sell their wares. He said they always do well.

"It's a good draw for people going to Canton and Potsdam," he said. "It's held at a good time of year. You get a lot of parents bringing their sons and daughters to college. I have a solid cherry bed here for $39. You can't find that in an outlet store."

Event organizer Jodi L. Hatch said the Auxiliary's food tent was sold out by 2 p.m., a good indicator of attendance.

"It's usually pretty cleared out by 2, and the crowd is still steady," she said. "One of our vendors told me this is the best show she's ever done."