With a charming brick exterior and wooden trim, Signs of the Times on 143 N Lancaster St. invites customers to browse various antiques and hidden treasures.
Signs of the Times has everything from dishware to eyeglasses to books to lunchboxes. Owner Judith Jones collects antiques from dealers, auctions, antique malls and antique stores.
Jones said she welcomes all regulars, newcomers and window shoppers.
“(I’m) very happy to see people come in and just visit, even if they don't buy something,” Jones said. “My favorite part these days is having people come in and talk to me.”
Jones opened the store in 1975 and has been running it herself ever since. Originally from Lebanon, Ohio, she moved to Athens when her then-husband was a student at Ohio University.
Signs of the Times, Jones said, has a double meaning.
“I started out first dealing in advertising signs in country stores,” she said. “So it's that kind of (physical) sign … and it's also an indication of an era.”
Of the pieces Jones has acquired, she houses a plethora of historical materials, including late 1800s and 1920s lithographs. These advertisements are handmade and often created using stones or metal plates and oil-based inks, Artst states.
“They were just beautiful,” she said. “It was true art and it also advertised things.”
This type of antique has always been special to Jones.
“My specialty and special love is old advertising items,” she said in a report by The Post published Jan. 24, 1980.
Olivia Sparshott, a freshman studying sociology and criminology, is not an antique enthusiast, but grew up around a household full of interesting items.
“They have always interested me,” Sparshott said. “When I was young, just visiting my grandparents’ house and my great-grandparents’ house and seeing everything … I got curious about it. Where did it come from? What did they use it for?”
Like Sparshott, Jones’ interest in antiques flourished organically.
“My mother hated antiques,” Jones said. “But a very dear friend of our family had a Victorian house, furnished with wonderful things (and) I realized there were wonderful things out there.”
Recently, Jones said she has seen younger generations shopping in the store, which comes as a surprise.
“Some people my age ... say that young people don’t like antiques, but that is not really true,” she said. “There are a limited number of people that like antiques in the first place, but I don't notice any difference in how many young people begin to like it as ever did.”
Dylan Halsey, a sophomore studying philosophy, said old maps are the most interesting type of antique.
“At one point in time they were useful,” he said. “Now you just have them to sort of keep around and look at but they're not useful in the way they used to be.”
Sparshott said her most treasured antique is a gold cross-shaped jewelry box.
“I just like the story that they (antiques) hold,” she said. “I feel like they hold so much even though they're just objects. They have a story.”
Sparshott said she has been to several antique stores but is excited to explore Signs of the Times, as she was unaware it existed.
The store is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Prices range depending on a customer’s purchase, but Jones encourages everyone to stop by.
“I just love that I have something somebody really treasures and really likes,” she said.
ms816224@ohio.edu
