Autobiography of Nettie Covey Sharpe
A Passion Becomes a Profession
It was rare, at the time, for people to be doing something like that: running around the countryside looking for things of value. Especially during the Second World War. There were Jewish people, however, who came through once in awhile. But it was all difficult to sell. At that time, I would find two or three armoires a week for about $10 each, but I couldn’t find anyone to buy them for even $20 or $30. No one was interested in them.
Some experts in Montreal, like Bertrand Baron, were already going into the countryside and dealing directly with families. Mr. Baron was an antiques dealer on Peel Street, with his sons. He started doing that sort of thing well before I did. There was also Brightman. Those were the two major antique dealers in Montreal back then.
I often went to Mr. Baron’s. I went there for French-Canadian furniture.
I often went into his shop; he was very nice.
That was also where I met Mrs. Foss. She went there to buy things as well. At first I knew her only by sight, although I did know who she was: she lived quite close to me. We quickly became good friends, with a shared passion.
When I brought pieces back to Montreal, I sold many of them to Mrs. Foss. There was a small shed at the back of her house, where I would store the furniture that I found on my expeditions. When I found furniture, I couldn’t bring it to Montreal myself, even if I had the car that day. It wouldn’t fit. So I found truckdrivers who were heading to Montreal, and I would say to them: “Go to such and such a house, where there’s an armoire I’ve bought. Can you move it for me tomorrow?” They would tell me that it would be delivered in two or three days. And I would give them Mrs. Foss’s address.
I never had any trouble. They took care of everything and I never even had to touch the furniture myself: it was delivered right to Mrs. Foss. The objects were put in her small shed and she bought them as she needed them. She restored them in her house. At one point, she had five cabinetmakers working for her. I can tell you that there was a lot of furniture handled there. And she was the one who dealt with all that.
I didn’t have much money in those days, either. People came and bought my nicest pieces. And when I sold them, I would put all my money in the bank. I was already an independent woman by then, and I handled my business the way I wanted.
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