Liz’s Birthday Roadtrip to Michigan – Day 1: Hammond Salvage and Resale, Rabbit Run Inn, Lakeside Antiques, and Harbert Antique Mall

For Liz’s birthday, I decided to organize a weekend roadtrip. When we talked about what she was wanting to do… getting away for a few days was high on the list. We talked about a trek to NY, but that seemed overly expensive; so instead, we settled on going away somewhere close by.

Thanks to Allison and Katherine for their trip recommendations (to both WI and MI). Though I got some killer B&B recommendations from Allison (which I am totally keeping in my back pocket for the future), I ended up going with a vintage/antique shopping trip based on some places Katherine suggested.

I plotted several stops on a Google Map, but kept this from Liz until the night before we were to leave. I wanted a bit of a surprise, but also to give her the chance to research and pick which spots she wanted to hit. There were a good number of places I had marked down, and it didn’t seem like we had enough time to get to them all (this would definitely be proven true after our first day).

We took Friday off of work, and spent the morning having a leisurely breakfast at Lula Cafe. After grabbing coffee from New Wave, we set out for Michigan.


En route, we had a stop planned for Hammond Salvage and Resale in Hammond, IN.


There was lots of stuff lined up all around the building, and my sense was that this place go


On walking in, there was lots of stuff pretty much everywhere.


It’s hard to spot, but there was a small side room (just to the right of the lamp).


I’m calling this the “media” room, as it had a lot of old electronics, albums, and books.


One thing I kept encountering repeatedly on the trip was a lot of albums. I kind of wish I was more into music, as there seemed to be a lot of great opportunities to go crate digging (I just wouldn’t know what to keep an eye out for).


Found a basket full of old photographs. Had to fight the urge to look through all of them, one by one.


A small corridor, leading to more rooms.


Further in the store, this was one of the rooms in the middle. The whole place felt a little like a labyrinth, with an additional room around each corner.


I’m not sure what this saying means, but it caught my eye. I found myself staring at it for a good while, trying to decipher it. Still not sure if this is a colloquialism or what, but I’m still trying to figure it out.

The tag on the left reads: “Dasiy / Patience Innocense Purity Loyal Love.”


One of many signs, telling you there’s more to see.


A really odd and hideous mixture of old/new in this phone. Usually when I’m out searching and photographing things, one item or theme will keep resurfacing. For today, it was all about phones.


Towards the back, there were primarily furniture rooms.


A cool looking old stove.


One item kind of popped out at me (which Liz spotted, and I missed until she pointed them out to me). There wasn’t a price on either of these Star Trek mugs, but I was half-tempted to buy them figuring they’d be worth money.


I ended up not even asking about the price, which is a bummer… because I just did a search, and found them listed on ebay (with one bid at $29 for a single mug). Dang!

From Hammond, we drove along 94 until we got to New Buffalo. We were going to check out a shop there, but on arriving… we discovered they were closed until May 1st. We were just a few days early, but made a note to try to get back here next month.

One thing that really baffles me – a lot of antique places do a really poor job of posting their hours online. I get that some places close for the winter season, but to not have any kind of info as to hours seems weird to me.

Since we were close by to our B&B, we ended up checking in a little early. Originally I was going to have us stay in Three Oaks. But I was a little unsure how much we’d be hanging around there, and opted for a place called Rabbit Run Inn.

Funny aside: this B&B was really, really close to where we stayed with my family when we all trekked up here last year. Literally just down the street.


After parking, this is the view of the B&B as we walked to the main house.


A nice swing, along with free bikes/helmets.


On checking in, we found a nice welcome waiting for us.


We chatted a while with the owners, and I got their permission to take a quick photo. L to R it’s Linda Jo, Lulu, and Rodney.


Liz, giving Lulu some extra petting.


Our room, which was comfy and modern feeling.


Couch, with a small hallway leading the bathroom and back deck.

I should mention the room also had a flatscreen TV with cable, and also Apple TV (with Netflix). Next to the bed in the hallway area, there was also a coffee and espresso maker in the room – along with grounds, sugar, cups, plates, etc. There as also a mini fridge and sink to boot.


Out back, we had a small deck to ourselves.


In the backyard, a small gazebo.


Some wicker chairs next to the koi pond. As Rodney was showing us our room, he told us about all the bird activity that had been going on lately (birds migrating back north, along with the eagles eyeing the crows’ nests/eggs). He also told us that they usually feed the fish around 5PM, if we wanted to watch/help.

Given how relaxing it was out back, Liz and I were half debating getting some wine and just spending the late afternoon hanging out here.


Liz, outside our room. If you’re curious to find out more about the Inn, or want to check out the room(s) in greater detail… there’s photos and videos on their website.

As the afternoon was getting on, Liz and I decided to grab a bit of food. We had early-ish dinner reservations, and with the time change (we lost an hour), we decided a light lunch would be best.

We travelled up Red Arrow Highway a bit, but were unable to find much of anything open. There were restaurants that didn’t open until 4PM, and one diner we stopped in at had closed for the day. We ended up happening across a place called Whistle Stop and it worked out well: we got some egg salad sandwiches and chips, and fueled up enough to keep us shopping for a few more hours.


Next up on our list: Lakeside Antiques.


As always, old typewriters tend to catch my eye. Although the more places we visited, the more I saw of these guys.


A cool looking indoor/outdoor fireplace. The first time I saw one of these guys was actually in Chicago, at the 2011 Vintage Bazaar Holiday Popup Shop.


As we were walking through the shop, Liz was standing with this great painting behind her. I don’t think she saw it, so I asked her to pose… and got her to lift her hands above her head. Only after I took this shot did she turn around, and started laughing.


A view of the interior. Honestly, the main building had a lot of really nice stuff – but much of it was higher end, and priced way beyond anything we could afford.

On walking out, we learned there was an additional building… so we decided to stop over to check it out.


Random pieces outdoors. The shattered head/bust was awesome looking to me.


A lot of the items in this additional side building were more in our price range, and more of the kind of shopping we were interested in. Lots of room, and lots to explore.


One of many cool phones I would encounter, that almost make me wish I had a landline again. Although finding one to top the orante column phone from Vintage Garage is going to be tough.


For some reason, if I owned this phone I feel like I would need to own a similar looking ashtray to set near it.


Killer looking vintage radio.


More stuff, and a set of stairs leading upstairs to… even more stuff.


So there was a paperback version of the movie? Who knew?


Scanning one of the bookshelves upstairs, I happened to spot something that caught my eye (on the right).


An old Sears Roebuck and Co. catalog, from 1909 – how appropros!

I have to admit, I got blinded by the title and initially assumed the booklet itself was from 1909. I even thought Wow, this is in remarkable condition for being over 100 years old. It took Liz, a few minutes later, to look inside at the copyright date to show me that it actually was a reprint from the 1970’s.


$8.75 Buys the No. 1 Harvard Disc Talking Machine

Awesome. The price on this guy was $2.00 so I decided to grab it. Gonna bring it in to work on Monday.


Vascular System of a Dogfish. Not sure who made this or why, but it’s pretty great.


A view of the upstairs area.


An old Edison phonograph, complete with recording cylinders.


These things always strike me as looking so cool. One of these days, I would love to hear one in action.


If I ever come into a lot of money, I’d wind up collecting these cannisters. At $25 a pop, it seems pretty pricey… but man, would I love to listen to all of them.


Several volumes of Charlie Brown’s ‘Cyclopedia. Pretty sure I had these as a kid, and was really tempted to pick them up. They were $3 each, but I opted against getting them.

A quick search on Amazon shows the complete set going for $129.99 and Volume 1 alone going for $14.25.


The next stop along the highway: Harbert Antique Mall.


The front area was a mixture of stuff, but nothing all that compelling to me. Some local artwork, this and that. But on rounding the corner and entering the building proper… it revealed a massive, massive space with tons of individual booths.


Looking in from the main entryway.


Another ornate phone (with hand crank). Something about these ornate phones automatically make me think about smoking cigarettes.


In a back room, chock full of stuff. Exploring here was pretty fun, as it felt a little unkempt… and suggested you might encounter something that someone else overlooked.


Barbie Disco. Check out those heels! On Ken!


Remember when I said it was all about phones? Well check this thing out. Out of nowhere, I rounded a corner to find this old switchboard… just sitting there, for sale.


I love that this dial is built-in to the machine.


A lot of wires that will potentially be crossed.


Also included: the instruction manual.


For $685, it’s a bit too rich for my blood. But damn if it isn’t just cool.


A welcome mat, unfinished.


When I first saw this, I uttered out Woah. And the next thing I did was gingerly touch the metal, a little afraid to knock on it to see if it was solid.


Apparently, it was a WWII practice bomb. Who knew they made things like this?


Not sure what this guy was, on first glance. Looked like a scale of some kind.


Finding the instructions pasted to the inside of the box, this thing apparently is a Stadimeter. Never heard of the term before, though I am kind of familiar with sextants and astrolabes.

Very, very cool. I wish things could talk, as I bet this guy has some good stories.


This last image won’t make much sense to anyone else besides me. Maybe my sister.

From time to time, I’ll encounter objects at flea markets or antique stores – objects from my childhood. And when I see them, it’s a weird trigger: a brief sliver of my life/past has suddenly manifested, and is for sale.

Whenever this happens, it’s a mixed feeling. Part of me feels old to have owned something that now appears in an antique store. Other times, I don’t feel so bad as the item isn’t commanding a super high price.

It’s just odd to run into things that you’re used to seeing in a different context. It’s a slow reminder sometimes that time is passing along, and that the things you own are all slowly turning into vintage collectibles.

Related:
Jung Family Vacation in Sawyer, Michigan – Day 1
Jung Family Vacation in Sawyer, Michigan – Day 2: Warren Dunes State Park and the Silver Beach Carousel
Jung Family Vacation In Sawyer, Michigan – Day 3: Apparel From the Past and Shawnee Road Antiques

This Post Has 1 Comment

  1. Liz Birthday trip to michicgan was an awesome Blogs you guys have …love all your articles and photos on antique hunting stores as what I always do when we go to a town in Wisconsin called northwoods you and liz would love it !! thanks for sharing

    edith dolan Reply


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