The Story of Our Old Feed Mill

In the Fall of 2004 Suzanne and Michael Cooke opened the Royal Port Antiques in the old South Jersey Farmer's Exchange, a 12,000 square foot abandoned warehouse along the banks of the Fenwick Creek.  The building sits at the entrance of the historic district of Salem, NJ.  With the encouragement of the town and support of the Historic Preservation Commission, Suzanne and Michael extensively restored the warehouse.  The property was built around 1918 as a warehouse.  The building represents an important chapter in Salem's early 20th century history.   It is the sole surviving structure of a larger complex of buildings that served the surrounding farming community.  The building was designed to provide storage space for local crops.  The exchange sold poultry and cattle feed, fertilizer and grass seed, which was shipped along the Delaware including Philadelphia and Camden, NJ.  The city of Salem was long recognized as an important place of trade and  commerce.  The structure of the building is distinctive in terms of the hollow blocks of glazed tiles used for the exterior walls.  The interior of the building maintains the original equipment used in the early 20th century to dry corn.  A dryer as well as its accompanying equipment exists as it did  then.  The equipment is part of the history of Salem and the Farmer's Exchange.  Michael and Suzanne are both full  time dealers and brought ten years of experience and a vision for the building and the community. The former owners of the Queen's Inn and King's Row Antiques in Mullica Hill, NJ simply outgrew their previous locations.  The 12,000 square foot building keeps both busy seeking out inventory and  offering a fresh look every day.  They are always seeking to purchase fresh merchandise to add to their extensive inventory.  A single owner shop of this size is unusual.  Suzanne and Michael take pride in the way the shop's inventory is presented.  The selection is ever changing.  Come and visit.  You will not only enjoy the beautiful countryside driving to Royal Port Antiques, but you will walk away with many ideas on how rooms can be planned using early pieces of furniture and accessories.  Relax on the large wrap around porch overlooking the water and enjoy the complimentary cookies and drinks Suzanne & Michael provide for their customers everyday.  Step back in Time!

 

 

 

Comments

[john dorety]

beautiful building Mike. good to meet you at lamberville.