AT THE corner of East Depot Street and Thompson Street, a few blocks from the historic Bedford County Courthouse, treasures await at Shelbyville’s oldest antique store. Every counter, curio cabinet, bric-a-brac shelf, wall, table, and corridor that winds through Ole Grapevine Antiques at 437 E. Depot St. is truly a sight to behold! And their blue-eyed mascot, Daisy, the toy Australian shepherd, will greet you at the door.
Do you collect chinoiserie pieces, or more specifically, the widely popular Blue Willow China? Look no further. What about pottery hand-painted in Appalachia? Maybe you are searching for unique jewelry, vintage cufflinks, a grandfather clock, a roll-top desk, a pair of Craftsman-style tables, stained-glass Tiffany lamps, or even Japanese-inspired decor? Look no further.
When decorating your home, business, or office, is your style cottagecore, farmhouse, Victorian, midcentury modern, French country, Mediterranean, or traditional? Eddie and Connie Murray have pieces for every design aesthetic and more. In fact, you could wander through every inch of their 6,000-square-foot building and more than 20,000 square feet of outdoor space for a solid week and still miss something.
Connie bought her first antique when she was 16 — a cobalt blue eyewash bottle. She was smitten. But it took her husband, Eddie, a little while “to grow into it.” He jokingly said, “You know what they say, ‘Happy wife, happy life.’ I do whatever she says. Connie is the brains, and I am the muscle.”
After Connie graduated from high school in Kentucky, she traveled to Bedford County to take an LPN class at the “old” hospital on Union Street. But the young man she fell in love with at the Mr. Burger on Madison Street — where Handy Dandy is now — changed her life forever. “We will be married for 61 years in December,” said Eddie, who is now 84.
When their first child was born in the late 1960s, Connie left her nursing career. Eddie said, “We didn’t have any money when we first married. We would go to country auctions and refinish the furniture, then resell the items. We stored everything in the smokehouse. When it was filled, we decided to open an antique shop.”
Connie added, “We opened Murray’s Decorating Center in the old Chrysler dealership across from Kincaid Service Center on Madison Street, where the Speedway gas station is now. I wanted to use the extra space to sell our antiques. We opened Ole Grapevine Antique Shop inside there in 1975. We also had booths in antique malls in Nashville and Murfreesboro.”
In those early days, they knew exactly what their customers wanted. Connie said, “People were really into clocks and sugar chests. We sold a lot of flow-blue china made in Europe. Fenton glass was really big. People were into limited prints such as those from Ralph McDonald, Guy Coheleach, Charles Frace, and local artist Wilma Bragg.”
Eddie added, “In those early days, we pretty much knew what everyone wanted. But today, I try to have a little bit of everything from axes to zebra skins. I don’t care what it is — there is someone bound to collect it. We sell a lot of arrowheads and coins. In the last six months, we have seen a resurgence of younger people coming in. We attribute this to YouTube and other avenues that inspire viewers to collect certain pieces or to curate items to achieve similar design styles.”
The Murrays have now spent the last five decades scouring estate liquidations and yard sales, and attending auctions to provide their Ole Grapevine customers with a wide assortment of antiques, glassware, one-of-a-kind collectibles, unique furniture pieces, lamps, books, photographs and pictures, sports memorabilia, and knick-knacks. They moved from the Shelbyville square to their current location 20 years ago. The building had once been a grocery store and an equipment rental store, so it was a perfect fit.
“We actually got into estate auctions by accident around 1980,” Eddie said. “A gentleman came in and asked if we would be interested in helping him sell most of what he owned because he was moving into a nursing home. We’ve now held hundreds of sales.”
The Murrays wholeheartedly believe the store keeps them young, and though they have both surpassed the usual retirement age, they don’t plan to close anytime soon. All of the merchandise belongs to them. They don’t rent out booth space to vendors, so they have the flexibility to close if a rare emergency arises.
“We are in fairly good health for people our age,” Eddie said. “We meet a lot of interesting folks, and no two days are ever the same. About 75% of our customers come from outside Bedford County. It’s always nice to see our ‘horse show folks.’ Many have come to visit us since we were over on Madison Street.”
Connie added, “When you own your own business, you don’t have a lot of time for socializing outside of work, so our customers have become some of our dearest friends.”
The couple agrees that the key to success has been hard work. “We live, eat, and breathe this business seven days a week. If we are not here, we are out looking for items to add to the store. This keeps us active.” Eddie chuckled, “In fact, we are always on the lookout. I can be traveling down the interstate, and Connie can be sound asleep until she spots a sign that says ‘antiques.’ She always wakes up.”
Connie said, “I hope people continue to love antiques. I want them to walk in our door and say, ‘Oh my goodness, look what all you have!’ I want them to be awestruck.”
“Our customers have given us 50 wonderful years, and we are so grateful they have allowed us to continue doing what we love,” the Murrays said. GN
For more information, go to: www.olegrapevineantiqueshoppe.antiquetrail.com/ Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
