BILLINGS — A unique selection of traditional antiques and specialized art was up for sale at the rescheduled Rescued and Reclaimed Antique and Salvage Market at the MetraPark carnival lot in Billings Saturday.
Originally scheduled for April, the antique market's 75 vendors moved outdoors for easier social distancing to keep up with state gathering restrictions and prevent COVID-19 spread.
The Rescued and Reclaimed market started in Billings in 2014. Joel Hageman is one of the organizers, booth-runner and a self-described "junker."
“Billings really likes the rescued and reclaimed market because they can come and see all sorts of stuff that they used to see in their grandma's house. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard the story of ‘oh, my grandma used to have one of these,’ and they have to buy it," Hageman said.
Vendors came from as far away as Idaho Falls and Moorhead, Minnesota to sell their items, Hageman said. One could find art made from recycled vehicle license plates, clothing, jewlery and all sorts of antique furniture at the market.
"It’s just a wide variety of antiques. We’ve got traditional antiques. Just a lot of cool, different types of vintage merchandise," Hageman said.
Hageman travels to the mid-western states of Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Indiana with his wife multiple times per year to collect items for his booth.
"There’s a lot more to choose from back there, a lot more unusual things that we can bring back and sell. We like to find things that you just can’t find in Montana," Hageman said.
The Rescued and Reclaimed market has grown since its first show. Hageman said the market travels to Sydney twice a year. The group's next stop is in Williston, North Dakota on July 27. There are also two more markets scheduled in Billings later in the year.
