Antiquers and vintage seekers will have a new place to peruse essentials and curiosities next May with Iron Horse Antiques & General Store at Boothbay Railway Village. Marketing and events coordinator Lori Reynolds said the renovations and conversion of the former Museum Store will give around 19 consignors room to display and sell their collections.

“It's going to be exciting because there are a lot of people who have inventory, but nowhere to sell it other than doing pop-up events,” said Reynolds. “We will be featuring artisans and makers as well as antiques and vintage pieces … We're going to have a little area that features our artists who are typically at the museum like the blacksmith, the weaver … There are (also) things here at the museum that just aren't practicable to put on display, so this would be another way for the Village to share what it has and to sustain itself.”

The General Store will look how it might have looked around 200 years ago and most items sold in the building will be relevant to the Village, said Reynolds. Having a multi-dealer shop dedicated to antiques and vintage items will be a draw for both the younger and older generations, she added. “We want this store to feel like 200 years ago when you walk in. It has to be antique, vintage, or local.”

Reynolds’ big challenge now is looking for antique dealers, vintage collectors, artisans and makers who want permanent consigning spaces. “A lot of collectors are displaced, some people maybe had storefronts and don't want to do it anymore because of the pandemic. Some people maybe … closed through this. I think there's a lot of people in the Midcoast area, the peninsula specifically, who need a new space to consign and my goal is to get the word out.”

The shop and store are now on the Maine Antique Trail which is part of a regional and national trail of destination shops. The shop and store will be open 2-7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays from Thanksgiving to Christmas; however, the official opening will not be until May when the museum opens for the 2021 season. Reynolds said the first pop-up series is meant to align with Boothbay Lights and Gardens Aglow and the BRV staff look forward to it after the decision to cancel the North Pole Express.

“This is an effort to support the Village. Anybody who decides to consign here is going to not only have an awesome place to sell their goods, but they'll be doing a good thing for the Village because it's another good way to keep us going after 56 years.”

Iron Horse Antiques is taking applications for consignment space; space is limited. For more information, call Reynolds at 1-207-671-7676 or email railwayvillageevents@gmail.com

This article has been updated since its original posting.