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By virtue of their existence, flea markets are quirky places. To start, the origin of the term ‘flea market’ is a bit of a riddle, with several theories existing as to how it came to be part of the everyday shopping lexicon. One of the more popular etymologies is that it stems from the French phase marché aux puces, an expression that indicates that a market specializes in second-hand goods. In fact, one of the best of its kind in France today is the one found along the shopping streets of Paris. Supposedly, the term coalesced in the 1880s when a nameless bargain hunter was meandering among the markets, looking for treasures buried amid the furniture and fabrics. The fear that fleas and other parasites were burrowed among the items was what prompted the slang ‘flea market’, a locution that debuted in G.S. Doughter’s 1922 book In Europe, which contains the line “It is called the 'Flea Market because there are so many second-hand articles sold of all kinds that they are believed to gather fleas.”
Terminology aside, flea markets are a global affair, with some of the best flea markets in the world located in such cosmopolitan places as Madrid, Spain (El Rastro) and Berlin, Germany (Mauerpark Flohmarkt). America has its own share of flea markets that are goldmines of treasures and trinkets, allowing any bargain-hunter to find their quirky and unique thingamajigs and whatchamacallits, no matter where they live.
What Is The Oldest Flea Market In The US?
Quirky and famous coexist when one examines the history of the oldest (and thereby most famous) flea market in all of America, the Brimfield Flea Market in Massachusetts. Equidistant to Salem and Boston (two other locations that have been ranked as ‘quirky’, especially when it comes to Massachusetts road trip pit stops and roadside attractions), Brimfield first debuted as a flea market in auctioneer Gordon Reid’s backyard in 1959. Today, the market plays host to over 5,000 vendors who are set up across 20 fields along a main road.
However, despite its lineage, Brimfield has competition when it comes to ranking it as one of the best flea markets in all of America, sharing space with fantastic markets in the US that cover every state from Georgia to California. Still, Brimfield is a spectacular oasis of bargain hunting, as the flea market is laid out in a vast patchwork of stalls and vendors, resembling a medieval farming field more so than a shopping arena. Shoppers can hunt for everything from Shabby Chic Decor to Local Roots Cannabis Crafted to items from yesteryear courtesy of Ruby Lane, a vintage shop featuring antique Toleware and aluminum advertising dating back to the days of using Rockabilly to sell soda pop.
- Reopens: Tuesday, May 9th; Hours are Friday - Saturday 8 am - 5 pm
- Address: 35 Palmer Road, Brimfield MA 01010
On opening day - Tuesday, May 9th - numerous booths open 2 hours earlier than normal, at 6 am. Also, hours depend on which field visitors are planning to visit, though the hours are generally 8 am - 5 pm, but check specific dealers to be sure of their particular hours.
What Is The Most Eclectic Flea Market In The US?
Everyone knows that the the famous Brooklyn flea market must be spectacular as it not only exists in the hustling nexus of activity and entertainment of New York City, but it also ranks as one of that nation’s most diverse flea markets, featuring everything from antiques to clothing to furniture. In addition to its eclecticism of goods, the market also offers flexibility in terms of locations, operating year-round at 29 W 25th St. with its springtime location reopening on April 1st at Dumbo Archway, 80 Pearl St.
Between the two locations, the one in the Dumbo neighborhood of Brooklyn - which stands for "Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass" - is considered especially heterogeneous by virtue of existing in one of Brooklyn's most iconic neighborhoods. Once a manufacturing center, in recent years, Dumbo has become an artistic haven, a perfect backdrop for bougie markets featuring the best of vintage and second-hand goods. Sellers display everything from art to jewelry to crafts. Pop by any vendor, and a person might find leather goods, silk kimonos with bouquet prints, herbal teas, vintage Nokias, boxes of vinyl that cover every genre from punk to country, and faux leather jackets with the Misfit patches on them.
In addition to goods, the market also hosts Smorgasburg from April to October. This is a massive, food-only market that migrates between the WTC on Fridays, Williamsburg on Saturdays, and Prospect Park’s Breeze Hill on Sundays. With more than 100 regional vendors, the food scene is described as artisanal and mouthwatering.
Brooklyn Flea Market
- Address: Dumbo Archway, 80 Pearl St.
- Hours: Opens April 1st; 8 am - 4 pm
- Website: Official Brooklyn Flea Market Website (Dumbo)
Chelsea Flea Market
- Address: 29 W. 25th Street b/w 6 Ave + Broadway
- Hours: 8 am - 4 pm; Open Sat + Sun, 8 am-4pm year-round
The flea market is free for all ages. Vendors accept cash, and most also accept debit and credit cards. There are ATMs on-site at all of the locations; however, the transaction fee is $2.50
What Is The Most Accessible Flea Market In The US?
When a flea market is called the Oddities & Curiosities Expo, then it’s a good bet that the venue is going to be stocked with all things strange and unusual. This Halloween-tinged market makes a person feel as though they are walking into a massive Cabinet of Curiosities that has been unassembled to satisfy the wicked curiosity of all. A vagabond expo, Oddities & Curiosities Expo is one of the first and only bazaars to remain itinerant, making it a flea market that is accessible to anyone in the continental U.S. at some point throughout the year. Once it comes anywhere near one's hometown, one should join the many other perusers who love browsing a hodgepodge that feels like someone else’s carefully curated collection of objects of virtus.
Costumes are encouraged! However, visitors might have to undergo a bag check to ensure that no weapons - costume-friendly or otherwise - are being brought in, so come prepared.
Stalls are filled with debunked or charlatan medical devices, funeral collectibles, morbid and macabre knickknacks, animal skulls, and everything else that falls under the umbrella of lovely yet lurid. Regarding taxidermy, all animals are sourced sustainably. What that means is that they come from vet clinics, farms, sanctuaries, road kill, and foraging. Essentially, animals are not sacrificed for capitalism. Also, shopping isn’t the only activity available to the public. In addition to selling butterfly taxidermy displays, the Expo offers Full Mount Rabbit Taxidermy Classes ($235) and Kit Fox Head Mount Taxidermy Classes ($275). For those who do not suffer from Coulrophobia, the Oddities Museum presents The Cryptic Collection of a Mad Clown.
To Purchase Tickets Online, merely go to the page, and find one's city
- Tickets: $10 in advance; $15 at the door
- For contact: fill out the message board
While the expo is absolutely kid-friendly, due to the nature of some merchandise, they do remind all shoppers that 'parental discretion is advised’. (If one's child doesn't feel a kinship to any member of the Addams Family, maybe leave them at home.
What Is The Most Over-The-Top Flea Market In The US?
As far as bombastic excess goes, the Rose Bowl Flea Market holds that title. For the last 50 years, it has filled Rose Bowl stadium thanks to its largess of vendors and buyers. Called by some the ‘granddaddy’ of all flea markets, the mega event boasts of having over 2,500 vendors and 20,000 buyers every month. Open the second Sunday of every month, this is an anything-and-everything type of flea market, with art, rattan furniture, beaded chandeliers, bull skulls, and Native American blankets embroidered with Zuni suns all for sale.
- Address: 1001 Rose Bowl Dr, Pasadena, CA 91103
- Tickets: $12 per person, but Children under 12 are free with an adult
- Hours: Opens at 9 am, rain or shine, to 3 pm
Those who want more exclusive access should consider VIP admission. It allows entry at 5 am, and a person can stay until 8:45 am. Such exclusivity is $20 a ticket.
This is one of the few flea markets that can boast of celebrity sightings. Drew Barrymore, Kendall Jenner, Angelina Jolie, and others have all been known to frequent the stalls.