Vancouver, WA

I first found the Antique Mall a few years ago and visit it fairly frequently. I love the antiques, but I really go for the books available from Secondhand Prose, a “Friends of the Oregon City Library” used bookstore, which is located inside the mall. The bookstore is small, but packed with great books starting at only a dollar for most paperbacks. I wish I could find a few more bookstores like this.

When I told a good friend about the store she told me to let her know when I was going and she would see if she could go with me, so I called her up. I knew she would not mind if I spent a lot of time looking through the books. I am such a voracious reader I need to spend a lot of time checking out the books to make sure I haven’t already read them, she is much more organized than I. She usually has a list of what she would like and a pretty good memory for books that aren’t on the list, but we usually finish up about the same time. So far I have lucked out and only bought a couple of re-reads.

I left my friend still browsing the books and set off to see what the rest of the mall had to offer. We didn’t have time to eat lunch here today, but I noticed that the small luncheon in the right hand corner as you come in was in the throes of disaster so I found the proprietress and asked if she was still open. She said she was trying to rewrite the menu and perhaps the layout of the place so her husband would find it an easier place to work. They make the most wonderful homemade breads, soups and salads; so I was happy to hear they were not closing.

The larger rental spaces are on the ground floor and feature fashionable displays of their antiques, while the upper floor is a hodge-podge of tiny cubicles; full of everything imaginable. Today I saw a set of Indonesian Red Puppets (according to the sign) that were very striking, some china cups that could have joined the sets passed down to my sisters and me from my mother and grandmothers, a table full of horses that Layla would have loved, crocheted doilies and table covers, china and other tableware, tons of toys, some old books. You could spend hours just looking around. Back on the ground floor I found a small side shop where they reupholster antique furniture, they even have some pieces for sale. They also carried quite a variety of smaller antiques.

The Oregon City Antique Mall is a wonderful place to visit, so give yourself plenty of time to look around. It is located at 502 Seventh Street in Oregon City. Take Exit 9 off I-205 turn left on McLoughlin, turn left on 10^th and follow it over the railroad tracks and up the hill. The mall is located just after the turn at the top of the hill on the corner of 7^th and Center Streets. The side of the building has a huge historical mural painted on it, something I like to see on some of these older buildings around town.