A Flashback

Have you ever had an incident happen where you knew you were being led to a certain time and place?

On Saturday, we were out for a walk in the neighborhood and saw a garage sale up ahead. We hadn’t plan to stop, but a big SUV turned a corner and actually park in the middle of the street, blocking our route. The driver jumped out and headed to the sale. We stood there for a moment because we were shocked at the audacity of the driver to park in the street, blocking other cars and blocking our walk. Then we headed around the car. In the background, we heard the homeowner say the house was also for sale and the shoppers could go inside where there is much more merchandise inside.

Although we were past the house, we decided to turn around and go in the house, since we like looking at houses, more than garage sales. Once inside the front door, the living room had a large table full of small vintage items. Right away, we spied a group of bears, three of which were Black Forest bears from Switzerland. We picked up a couple of other items and then proceed to check out the other rooms. We laughed at our luck of finding the bears and were amazed that the three we picked out were marked $2 for all three bears. We also joked about not setting them down, for surely someone else would pick them up.

After we paid, we carried our purchases as we finished our walk. We got to reminiscing about the day we had bears stolen at the store. It was our one big shoplifting incident. Someone had come in with a large Styrofoam cup and a big bag. We had just recently added the new section of the store and was featuring items we had purchased in England and Belgium. Philip noticed the middle-aged lady acting weird and darting out, so he jotted down her license plate number, while Theresa did a quick look around. Our three Black Forest bears were gone. We were so disappointed. A loss of $228. 

After that, we rearranged our store, displaying the more expensive items in the rear, near the checkout. Philip laid the license plate number aside. We never saw the lady again. And luckily our shoplifting losses were few over the years, but we never forgot the first loss.

Anyway, back to Saturday, Philip mentioned he had just re-discovered the paper with the license plate number on Friday. How weird the way things connect? As we settled back home, Philip looked up our old inventory sheets and photos of our English purchases. Low and behold, the bears that were purchased at the garage sale were the ones stolen from the store 12 years ago!! We have photos to prove that the three little bears are exactly the ones stolen. We were at the right place, at the right time and pushed by fate towards our bear recovery.

Secret Stories from Our Buildings

At the end of June, we sold our buildings on Glenstone Avenue. The new owner will continue to rent the main building to the Cottage Consignments and the smaller building to Aristo Hair Designs. We wish them all the best.

Once the Gallery was emptied and cleaned, we took some photos and reminisced on the decades of memories. Dad built the buildings in the 1950s when Glenstone Avenue just a two-lane highway to Ozark. The family had sold the Robertson Grocer Company in Springfield and Bolivar Grocer Co. and Dad turned his picture framing hobby into the first business in the new building.

This building held some secrets.

In this first photo, the Gallery has a pocket door which allowed Dad to separate two halves of the first section of the building. The secret is set between the housewares department and the art gallery where there was a window. The window was a car Model-A windshield. My great-grandfather liked to disappear and wander down to the REA’s dead freight room at the railroad station. One time, he bought a whole case of Model A windshields. Not an average purchase. The family found uses for all the windows through the years, and this one was the last one in the box and ended up in the pocket door in the new building in 1953.

In the second photo, I’m standing next to the frame moulding shelves. Lengths of moulding, up to 12+ feet could be stored here horizontally. Philip’s dad, Gordon, built them. While we were cleaning out old inventory, we found a wooden crate from one of dad’s first moulding shipments from a New York wholesaler. Dad’s father, Frank, lived down the street on Delmar, so he frequently visited and helped cover the front of the store when needed. The secret is that this room held Frank’s sleeping sofa. Naps are essential for Robertson men. We still referred to it as Grandpa’s room.

In the same room, tucked into a corner, was a huge 5 foot safe. The family’s wholesale grocer company was downtown between Campbell and Main on Water Street. The delivery trucks were parked overnight in another company’s livery stable’s basement, J.C. Dysart Mule Barn and Livery Stable, on Olive and Campbell. The safe came from that livery stable. If that safe could talk, it would have some old Springfield stories to tell.

And finally, in the workroom in the back, is an old fire proof metal door. In the early 1950s, one could obtain a lower insurance rate by separating the front sales room from the workroom. The old furnace is long gone, but the fire proof metal door remains.

Once everything was removed and the floors were swept, the rooms looked bigger and I realized what a great job my dad did with the design of the buildings. It was an important part of my life for 68 years.

Closing Our Retail Store

From helping dad by sweeping the floor when I was little, to framing at 16, then taking over in 1975, Six days a week for 52 years. Adding English antiques in 2009 spiced up the store; however COVID kept us from our buying trips, so the decision has been made to close the store. We hope to continue to sell antiques online, but the framing is finished.

Thanks for your support and encouragement. Stop by and pick up a bargain or two during our liquidation sale.

Philip

Everything in the Store is 50% Off!!

We are reducing inventory to move into the smaller Art Gallery room at the store.
Until we can resume shopping in England, we’re selling our English treasures at a reduced price.
The Cottage Consignments is planning on moving into the middle section of our building.

Our 2020 Holiday Hours

Closing early on Thursday, December 24 reduced hours 11:00-1:00

Closed December 25-December 28

Closed January 1.

Souvenir Plates by Rowland & Marsellus

Historical Philadelphia Souvenir Plate

Blue Souvenir plates with rolled borders were manufactured for the company of Rowland and Marsellus. They were an English Pottery importer in New York from 1893 to 1933. They brought in over 500 patterns of historical places in the United States. People had a taste for a souvenir of a place they had visited. Prices for the souvenir plates have dropped in the last 10 years. They can be purchased for under $50.

Rowland and Marcellus’ Rolled Border

Backstamp of the Importer, not the Pottery.

Reopening May 5

We are preparing to reopen on Tuesday, May 5.

Our new hours will be Tuesday – Saturday 11:00 am to 4:30 p.m.

If you need special considerations, please call us at 417-869-8262 at least 24 hours in advance to make an appointment for a private showing, either before or after posted opening times.

Closed during Covid-19 Crisis

Reduced Hours

Tuesday-Saturday     11:00-2:00

Sunday and Monday        Closed

Dear Customers,

We are glad that Springfield is being careful about the pandemic. We are taking it seriously as well and are disinfecting door handles, the checkout desk and our credit card machine.

Due to the pandemic, we have decided not to shop in Europe this year and have cancelled our overseas travel plans. We’re still bringing in fun and interesting antiques.

Philip is keeping the store open and he’s busy framing various projects and selling antiques.

Please continue to follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Should the store temporarily close, we will post it on social media.

We just want to let you know we are so appreciative of your support for our small business and we wish you the very best.