Antique festival brings big crowds downtown
-
Donna Raines, right, of Burrville Antiques on Market Street waits on customer Betty Dowling of Clinton as Don Raines looks on during last Saturday’s spring antique festival in downtown Clinton. - G. Chambers Williams III
-
Tiffany Dyke of Maynardville holds her 3-year-old daughter Emory as her 10-year-old daughter Audrey stands by as they look over merchandise at a stand on Market Street during last Saturday’s Clinch River Spring Antique Festival. - G. Chambers Williams III
-
Kayla Webber, left, looks over merchandise at a booth on Market Street during Saturday’s Clinch River Spring Antique Festival along with daughter Joanie, 2, and her mom Tonya Webber. - G. Chambers Williams III
-
Some visitors broke out their umbrellas when light rain began to fall Saturday afternoon during the Clinch River Spring Antique Festival on Market Street in downtown Clinton. - G. Chambers Williams III
Despite the gloomy forecast and some occasional rain, crowds turned out in big numbers for last weekend’s 20th-annual Clinch River Spring Antique Festival, merchants in the historic downtown Clinton area reported.
The festival took over Market Street and part of Main Street on Friday and Saturday, and attendance was especially surprising good on Friday, some of the merchants said.
“Friday was great – there was a big crowd of buyers,” Donna Raines, who owns Burrville Antiques at 355 Market St. along with her husband, Don, said around noon on Saturday.
“Today looks like the same,” she added.
Sandy and Albert Davis of Claxton were selling antiques from a tent set up on Market Street.
“We’re just about sold out from Friday’s crowd,” Sandy Davis said shortly after noon on Saturday. It was a very good day.”
Market Street was still crowded early Saturday afternoon, but when a few raindrops began to fall, visitors brought out their umbrellas rather than head for their cars. The heavy rains didn’t come until later, though.
Sponsored by the Historic Downtown Clinton Merchants Association, the spring Antique Festival has been held for two decades to help kick off the summer selling season for the downtown stores, attracting thousands of visitors.
