A pair of perfectly matched prancing ponies, from the collection of Randy Nicholson and Jo Dobbs, was a show stopper at the fall fair.

Text by Barbara Crozier
Photography by Tre Dunham

When I sat down to write this article I struggled to find the perfect place to begin. Should I start with a list of superlatives about the great Americana tradition of The Red Barn at Round Top … or should I try to capture the change in the atmosphere that had obviously arrived with the new owners Susan and Bo Franks?

Almost everyone, even those only casually interested in antiques, knows Round Top is where Americana activity in Texas started when antique icon Emma Lee Turney opened the first Round Top show over forty years ago. But there is obviously something more than show-longevity that continues to draw devoted collectors to haunt these almost hallowed halls.

American bandanas and paisley prints, fabulous French toiles, and richly-toned American trade blankets offered by Pique Trouver, were fabric favorites in the 2009 Fall Show at the Big Red Barn, Round Top Texas. Photo credit: RoundTopAntiques.com

Certainly the collection of Americana antiques at The Big Red Barn at Round Top is at the heart of the activity of the Round Top Fair. The immense Round Top Fair offers literally millions of antique items and hundreds of dealers spread over dozens of venues. Yet the Big Red Barn stands synonymous, year after year, show after show, with The Round Top Antique Fair.

The tone of The Big Red Barn venue, until recently, has been a bit more restrained that the free-wheeling passion for the hunt for beauty that earmarks Marburger Farms a few miles farther down the hills of State Highway 95. The Barn, as it is commonly called, has continually attracted dealers who offer antiques for the serious collector. Collectors, unlike the rest of us, come armed with tools of the trade like jewelers’ rings and magnifying glasses. They carry black lights and stacks of reference books in the backseats of their cars, and their passion for historic discovery is an almost visible mantle they proudly wear. These collectors are archaeologists, who dig, not through the sands of distant lands, but through the rows of booths filled with the beautiful, the unusual, and the commonplace things of the past. Collectors speak an exotic language of provenance, authenticity, and original ownership.

The charm of cherubs and glimmer of gold drew collectors and designers alike to the antiques assembled by Robert Barrett and Molly Johnson.

I was privileged to travel as the interpreter of this foreign language of antiques and authenticity for the TH&L team on their most recent visit to The Barn. It was early in the show and strangely still somehow; we had arrived in that moment-in-time between the hectic hours of dealer set-up and the frenzy that comes when the doors are opened to collectors. Removed from the noise of the exchange of theories, and the transfer of coins and collections that mark trading fairs of any kind, we were instantly captivated by the antiques themselves.

The wall rack of pre-20th century firearms pictured was just a small sampling of the fabulous array of weaponry offered by Axe Antiques.

The very first corner we rounded our photographer whipped out his camera and started snapping … shot after shot after shot. The gleaming gun-metal gray of the firearms display of Axe Antiques from Cornelius, North Carolina had drawn Tre like a kid to a candy store. We gazed in amazement at the array of matchlocks and flintlocks, and wheel locks, and dueling pistols. In an enlightening interview with Robert Axelrod, founder of Axe Antiques, I learned there was not a single arm in the collection later than 1898. Axelrod, a Connecticut attorney by profession and purveyor of antiques arms by passion, knows not only every design detail of each weapon, but the details of its provenance as well. Robert was quick to share that the wheel lock which had caught our attention was a 15th-century piece that had belonged to the King of Denmark, and could barely contain his enthusiasm when he talked about a piece he is bringing to the spring show. A pistol, its holder, and the campaign trunk of the Confederate hero, Dick Dowling of Sabine Pass, will make their way back to Texas for the spring show. The details of origin, like the saga of Sabine Pass, are one of the things that have made this particular antique venue a virtual mecca for collectors.

We had finally entreated our photographer to venture a few steps past the Axe Antiques booth when we were stopped dead-still by a pristine pair of prancing ponies. The pair was poised at the entrance to the booth of Randy Nicholson and Jo Dobbs of Cypress Creek Antiques in Comfort, Texas. The very stance of these proud cement ponies seemed to herald the excitement surrounding the Franks’ chapter of The Barn’s Americana success story. The lighting-quick sale of this pony pair to a well-respected designer from Belgium was an obvious source of pride for Nicholson. He assured us that the ponies are as much at home in an exclusive design shop in Belgium as they were on the Virginia farm that was their first home.

Jack Hinson of Boerne, Texas attracted the attention of the crowds with a fabulous cowhide-covered American Empire sofa.

We explored aisle after aisle, tantalized by the inspired and eclectic mixture of things old, things interesting, and things beautiful. Elegant cherubim and an intricate gilt mirror created an old-world backdrop for the new-world tramp art collection of long-time Red Barn dealers Robert Barrett and Molly Johnson. But the biggest piece of tramp art I have ever seen waited just next door. A beautifully executed mirror hung over a fine Empire sofa which is now contemporarily upholstered in stunning cowhide. A simple rough-hewn yoke and a turn-of-the-century tin light fixture add a surprisingly familiar dimension to the artistic vignette that is the booth of Jack Hinson of Boerne, Texas. Hinson, a great talker and a former educator turned antiquitarian, tells us that it is the quality of the dealers who participate, and the fine antiques they purvey that drive him to return to Round Top again and again.

Pictured is a stunning English silver tea and coffee service from the booth of Kay Wilbanks of Atlanta, Georgia.

We venture across the aisle to discover stacks of gleaming English silver. The perfectly polished silver in the booth of transplanted Texan Kay Wilbanks, now of Atlanta, exemplifies a new antique amalgam as it shimmers adjacent to its 18th-century American counterparts. As we continue to leisurely explore the aisles and aisles of antiques, the Franks’ vision to offer a complete antique venue becomes clear to us. America and its artifacts did not exist in isolation from the craftsmanship and taste of the rest of the world, but in concert with the art and antiques of the flourishing English and European markets. The Big Red Barn and its sister sites are now the perfect places to see that amalgam theory in action. Susan and Bo have added a beautiful, over-the-top Continental Tent housing dozens of top-notch Continental dealers, and an 18,000-square-foot tent to accommodate the growing overflow from The Barn itself; and they continue their commitment to the quality dealers at the historic Carmine Dance Hall.

The Franks have stretched the scope of the antiques that collectors, designers, and casual antique hounds can expect to find at The Barn, while carefully guarding its long-standing reputation for quality and authenticity. Susan and Bo have infused a delightful freshness into the show that is immediately apparent. They have managed to blend the elegance and excitement of European art and antiques into this revered Americana showcase, and haven’t sacrificed one iota of integrity.

A simple set of story blocks tells not only a story, but reminds us that antiques do not have to reminders of unattainable luxury. The everyday and commonplace things of the past often become the most sought-after antiques because no one thought they would ever be worth saving.

Their efforts prove that even in the antique industry, which upholds a sacred trust to protect the past, change can be good. In this case, it can even be delicious. The Franks’ addition of a catering tent for Bud Royer of the fabulous Royer’s Cafe marked a real move to spice things up a bit. Bud, with his Will-Rogers style of banter, and huge helpings of homemade pies and tony comfort food, offers a welcome spot to feast and take a break from your labors. And by the end of our TH&L day of exploration, we were certain you will love those labors as you lug the trove of treasures you are sure to find when you too … return to Round Top. TH&L

Barbara Crozier, a frequent feature writer for TH&L, owns and operates Laurel Ridge Antiques in Gonzales, Texas: specializing in American furniture of the 19th century. For questions email barbara
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