Generally flea markets are a highly regional affair so I’m soliciting you, the ACL faithful, to send me your favorite flea market, rummage sale and or swap meet. With this information I plan on making a list (like The American List) of stand out flea markets. Feel free to email me at: flea [at] acontinuouslean [dot] com with your submission or just let her fly in the comments. Thank you for your ongoing support. Your help will make ACL a better place.
You are SUCH a genius. Please someone from MI contribute….
dude – the giant ex-drive-in movie theatre in Scranton, PA!
Brimfield. Hands down the best single place to find inspiration and a great place to forecast upcoming trends in fashion and style.
I took a few pictures at the market on fairfax in hollywood. a lot of great finds there, especially this old motorcycle jacket.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/26590896@N06/3121110615/
http://www.rogersohio.com/
Enough said.
I’ll be watching for this list with great interest. The only flea markets I know of are full of Mexican vendors hawking t-shirts and velvet paintings.
i know you are looking for American flea markets, but here’s a contribution from Dublin. Two friends of mine brought flea markets back from dead in the city:
http://dublinflea.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=c4d43b48da3221910496dfa392b266ee&gid=51464216333&ref=search
I know PA to some degree.
Kutztown, PA http://www.renningers.com/kutzexthome.htm
Quakertown, PA http://www.quakertownfarmersmkt.com/Contents/AboutUs.aspx
St. Louis – Belle Clair Flea Market: http://www.bcfairgrounds.net/index.asp?action=page&name=9
Chicago – Kane County Flea Market: http://www.kanecountyfleamarket.com/
I wish I could tell you of a great flea market in MI, but they are all pretty much eBay rejects and blowback. I went to Kane County earlier this year and it was half empty????!!!! You could try the Royal Oak Antiques market which happens every Sunday in Royal Oak, MI.
Rose Bowl Pasadena
Hands down the best swap meet in Northern Californa is the Alameda swap meet, aka The Antique and Collectibles Faire:
http://www.antiquesbybay.com/
It’s on the first sunday of every month, it’s the Bay Area’s version of the Rose Bowl, and some say it’s better because of the prices.
flea market every weekend in park slope in front of p.s. 321 on 7th avenue between 1st and 2nd street
Elephant’s Trunk flea Market in New Milford CT!
http://www.etflea.com/
This is one of the best ideas that I have seen on a blog in awhile!
I remember living in Colorado and visiting the Mile High Flea Market once a week. Some of the best times of my life.
Sorry but this is all the information that I could find. http://www.milehighfleamarket.com/index.html
The Englishtown Auction has been running every weekend continuously in central Jersey (Monmouth County) since 1929.
http://www.englishtownauction.com/
It’s changed over the years. I can remember as a kid going down with my grandparents in the early 70’s to watch the guy who could bend steel bars in his bear hands, or to search the hub cap guy’s area for a match for the one lost on our ’71 International Travelall. Much of that is gone now, but quite a bit of the old charm remains, especially in the outer areas where space is cheap and people just drag their stuff onto tarps and the ground.
It’s definitely worth a trip.
World’s Longest Yard Sale. Happening right now.
The Jockey Lot in Anderson, SC. Can get everything from roosters, to shotguns, to antique grandfather clocks, flat screen televisions, and more.
The flea market at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu is a must do if you happen to vacationing or transiting the place. Its huge, with multiple levels on the parking area around the ouside of the stadium. Especially good for families with limted vacation budgets, you can buy all your souvenirs, t shirts, trinkets, hawaiian shirts, locally made jewelry, and gifts for your favorite aunt or uncle, admin assistant, etc at a fraction of what you’ll spend elsewhere. We even bought hawaiian print luggage for my wife and daughter in law. Very easy to find on the carousel!
As always at flea markets, check for seconds and defects, although the flaws in some of the t shirts actually added to their look so we bought them anyway.
Check before you go but it used to be early mornings on both Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Alameda flea market…not so far from sf and a pile of awesome! first sunday of every month.
Southwestern pride:
Austin Citywide Garage Sale (Austin, TX)
http://www.cwgs.com/
Expo New Mexico Flea Market (Albuquerque, NM)
http://www.exponm.com/en/fleamarket/
But really, ACL, what we could also use is an Antiques Mall compendium. I’ve always found that, while there are lovely people who follow the flea circuit around the country every summer–people you see in LA and New York and Brimfield–it’s the septuagenarians manning the stalls of the nation’s antiques malls who are really at the top of their game. That’s true grit.
Seattle, WA: The Fremont Sunday Market
http://www.fremontmarket.com/fremont/
http://www.longbeachantiquemarket.com/ Long Beach, CA
Does anyone have any suggestions for Portland, ME, or round thereabouts?
Rogers, OH
First Monday in Canton, Texas. It use to be so much cooler, but there’s still an acre or two devoted to treasure seekers. Shit man as a kid I hated flea markets. It seemed like dad was always dragin’ us to one. He’d trade the Chinook for a sail boat or the riding lawnmower for an electric organ. Of course he didn’t know how to sail, much less play the fucking organ. I think he just got a kick out of it all the haggling and what not.
Canton is still pretty damn good Henry. Also, City-Wide Garage Sale in Austin can be great. http://www.cwgs.com/
If anyone has any washington, DC suggestions please throw them out! Outside of the eastern market flea on sundays (which is only so-so in the first place..) I have not been able to find many good ones…
Waterbury, VT. Rt 2 just north of town. Like many flea markets, it has steadily declined in quality and quantity over the years but there’s still some stuff to be found.
There’s one on Rt. 7 in Charlotte, also, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
A map like you did for shopping and drinking would be pretty cool for this list. $
Canton used to be kick ass. Now I’d have to pick Round Top if I’m in Texas.
Scotts (once a month in Atlanta, GA and Columbus, OH are good
Lambertville, NJ
I’ll be hitting el Rasto in Madrid in November.
The Black Angus Antique and Flea Market in Adamstown, PA – Sundays – Awesome
http://www.stoudtsbeer.com/antiques.html
the garage… 112 w25th, nyc
great flea market on two levels of a garage kept vacant on the weekends. some vendors can be pricey (especially clothing), but i’ve picked up great pieces from lamps to vintage photographs to bird etchings for relatively cheap.
sadly, i heard this garage is going to be turned into yet another luxury high rise… who knows what will happen to the flea market.
shupp’s grove in adamstown, pa.
The Newfane Flea Market, Sundays 6am- 2pm, Rt. 30, Newfane, VT
I’m surprised no one’s mentioned Shipshewana, Indiana, yet. They’ve got an extensive flea market and they host auctions, too. A lot of Amish crafts can be had here, too.
http://www.tradingplaceamerica.com/
The brooklyn flea is great, if just a touch over edited:
http://brownstoner.com/brooklynflea/
standout location, great vendors.
The Brooklyn Flea – two locations: Fort Greene (Saturday) & DUMBO (Sunday)
http://sanfrancisco.going.com/event-645189;Alamo_Square_Flea_Market
Toronto, ON – Every Sunday the St. Lawrence Market has a hit-or-miss flea market across from the farmers market (downtown, Union). It’s always great around the holidays.
Atlanta, GA used to have a huge one called Lakewood every month. Im not sure if it’s still around, but it was about 8 massive buildings. I grew up learning how to bargain on vintage Trixie Belden books.
The Civitan Flea Market (held the 1st Saturday of each month) in Arlington, VA in the parking deck over I-66. One of the better flea markets in the Metro DC area for vintage trinkets.
http://www.antiquesbybay.com/