Lessons from The Worlds Longest Yard Sale 2020

Yard sales can offer outgrown clothes, unwanted household plunder or the occasional truly-collectible find.  The World’s Longest Yard Sale is no different.  I’ve talked about the sale in years past, but this year is different – I am a part of it!  So I took a bit of a close-up look, and as I’m often wont to do, I was thinking about history.

I don’t know that all these vendors are country folk, but they could sure outfit a country home.  From brand new chairs that would equip your porch to reclaimed chairs with rag seats, there plenty of opportunity to rest your weary bones.  And you’ll surely have weary bones after a day on the sale.

There are all kinds of vintage kitchen tools – from depression-ware glass to enameled pots, pans or enormous coffee pots.  I saw a Wooden Swing Butter Churn (and I will confess that I only knew just what it was because the vendor very kindly labelled it for me).  Then I saw a little cabinet with teapots.  Whether that’s a reminder of our English roots or maybe it was a common household item in yesteryear, these are beautiful collectibles. 

Among the new items were crochet-trimmed towels and embroidered pillow cases.  These were certainly reminders of my grandmothers’ homes.

It’s dangerous for me to spend much time at these sites because I think I need about everything I see there.  I like to see things for sale that I have in my home today – sometimes I feel encouraged that I own such a valuable item, or maybe I mentally exclaim that I’d never sell mine for that price. 

I watch the people parading through these booths and wonder what their thoughts are.  Do they have a wash tub at home?  Do they even know what to do with a Wooden Swing Butter Churn?  Have they ever tasted freshly –churned butter and appreciated the cool sweet flavor as well as the fruit of their churning-labor?

Some folks saw the Tennessee Mountain Stories banner and stopped in to ask questions or pick up a book.  If you’re reading this after first being introduced to The Stories on the yard sale, Welcome!  If you’re reading before heading out to search for your own treasures, look me up.  I’ll be at Green Acres Real Estate & Auction in Clarkrange, Tennessee, on the corner of Hwy 127 and Clear Fork Road.