Contents of antique shop near Panama City, Fla., will be sold at auction Saturday, Sept. 24th

(WEWAHITCHKA, Fla.) – Hundreds of items from the once-thriving (but now closed) Finders Keepers antiques shop, plus a massive mostly-Lionel toy train set (many pieces from the 1930s), will be sold Sat., Sept. 24, in an on-site auction at Lake Alice Park, located across from what was once the Finders Keepers storefront in Wewahitchka, 25 miles east of Panama City.

The sale will be conducted by The Specialists of the South, Inc., based in Panama City. “For ten years, Finders Keepers was one of the Florida panhandle’s premier destinations for people searching for quality antiques and collectibles,” said Logan Adams of The Specialists of the South, Inc. “The shop was filled with pottery, books, period furniture, glassware and more.”

Susan Burnette, who owned Finders Keepers, said, “Being from North Carolina, I would regularly travel up and down the Southeast to find the treasures that would make Finders Keepers the store it became. In a bittersweet move back to North Carolina, I must regretfully turn these treasures over to whoever will be lucky enough to win them. I wish a happy auction to all.”

The train set is a separate consignment, from James Quirk of Panama City, whose grandfather built a predominantly Lionel collection that dates back to the Depression era. About 45 lots – to include seven engines, numerous box cars, extensive track, instruction manuals, a book about Lionel trains and more – will be offered, with some of the items sold in multiple lots.

Highlights of the collection include several GM diesel trains (Santa Fe edition), older Lionel engines, Tyco H-O scale examples still in their original boxes, a Shell Gasoline tin tanker, passenger cars, railroad crossing signs, 150-200 pieces of track, transformers, control levers, cranes, steam plows and more. Some pieces have normal wear and patina, but all appear operational.

About half of Finders Keepers was dedicated to books, a passion of Ms. Burnette’s, and one volume expected to generate bidder interest is a circa-1923 copy of Little Women, the Louisa May Alcott classic, in fine condition. Books of all kinds will be offered – rare, out-of-print, fiction, non-fiction, new authors and old. A vintage clock expected to do well is an all-original circa-1830 mantel clock made by William, Orton, Prestons & Company of Farmington, Conn.

Pottery pieces will feature an early 20th century Catawba Valley one-handled vessel with beautiful glaze, an early 20th century North Carolina butter churn with original wooden lid and replacement dash, three circa-1916 Roseville pitchers, a stoneware crock and demijohn made in New York, a white pickle castor from Georgia and more.

Also offered will be an enameled, decorated lavender-to-clear Mary Gregory pitcher with scene of a young girl with gilt rim, a hand-painted Fenton water set with ruffled edge and six tumblers, an early Northwood water set (opalescent blue swirl, with four tumblers), and a Roseville Holland beer stein set (large stein and three mugs), circa 1916, in excellent condition.

Fans of Pink Willow – the transferware pattern highly desired by collectors – will be happy to learn this sale will feature around 60 pieces. Most were made by the Royal China Company (Ohio, circa 1960s). Included will be a complete service for eight, with extra serving pieces (salt and pepper, sugar and creamer, platters, fruit and vegetable bowls) and other fine examples.

Furniture pieces will include a beautiful circa-1890 Renaissance Revival tiger oak buffet with heavily carved claw feet, original dark chocolate patina and original hardware; a mahogany Chippendale-style vanity with tri-fold beveled original mirror, ball and claw feet and bead board around five drawers; and an English-made Art Nouveau hall tree with all the original hardware.

Additional furniture will feature a circa-1830 Empire secretary made of burled walnut veneer and cherry, with pine and poplar as secondary woods (and a pull-out davenport with recent leather lining); a 19th century Windsor chair with a rush seat and comb-back headrest, with its original patina; and a circa-1875 Renaissance Revival mahogany chair with needlepoint seat.

Artwork and prints will include a pair of charcoal portraits in the original cast and gesso wood frames (Roanoke, Va., circa 1900), with one of the subjects a prominent doctor; a mixed media English landscape (watercolor, pastel and gouache), unsigned; an oil painting by the prominent watercolorist Carolyn Blish (whose prints from this original work are titled Picking Daisies); and a framed print showing the 20th century American humorist and author Will Rogers, housed in a walnut veneer frame.

Decorative accessories will feature a Weller Louwelsa jardinière in excellent condition, an English portrait tile (Gladstone, circa 1900), a circa-1890 English Art Nouveau double-wick oil lamp (non-converted, with non-original hurricane shade), a 19th century oak spinning wheel with 40-inch diameter wheel, and an Arts and Crafts Royal Doulton humidor in great condition.

For the most part this will be an absolute auction (everything sells, regardless of price), but some lots will carry reserves. Online bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com, and phone and absentee bids will also be accepted. Previews will be held in the week leading up to auction day (by appointment) and on the morning of the sale. The auction will begin promptly at 9 a.m. (CST).

The Specialists of the South, Inc., has been serving the Panama City community for over 30 years. The firm specializes in a broad range of services, to include estate auctions, furniture refurbishing, interior decoration, personal property appraisals and business liquidation services. It has been awarded the Small Business of the Month by the Bay County Chamber of Commerce.

The Specialists of the South, Inc., is always accepting quality consignments for future sales. To consign an item, estate or collection, you may call them at (850) 785-2577, or you may e-mail them at specialists@knology.net. To learn more, or to register for the Sept. 24 auction, you may log on to either www.SpecialistsoftheSouth.com or www.PanamaCityAuctions.com.

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The Specialists of the South, Inc., is a full-service auction company based in Panama City, Fla. The firm also does furniture restorations.

The Specialists of the South, Inc.
544 East 6th Street
Panama City, FL 32401
Press Contact: Logan Adams
specialists@knology.net
Ph: (850) 785-2577
Fax: (850) 872-8662

This release was published on openPR.