2021 Visit Meridian Visitors Guide

14 15 VISITMERIDIAN.COM VINTAGE JUNK LOVER When you’re hunting antiques in Meridian, you’ll do a bit of roaming, and you’ll poke around in some unexpected places. In other words, you’ll do what antique hunters love to do anyway. For a good starting point, head out on US Highway 45 a little past the Marion town limit. You’ll find two big antique malls a quarter-mile apart: 45 Flea Market and Antiques, and Penny’s Little Flea Market. Both have plenty to browse in the parking lot before you make your way to the booths inside. 45 Flea Market in particular probably has at least one example of whatever you’re looking for, from old farm machinery to delicate glassware. It even attracted a film crew from Home Town, the HGTV series that stars home restorers Ben and Erin Napier, based in Laurel, Mississippi. Less than a half mile south of 45 Flea Market, just off US 45 on Sam Lackey Road, is the new location of Uneedit (or, as the sign on the building says, U-need-it) a mall, flea market, pawn shop, and auction company that specializes in antiques, collectibles, and estates. A few miles south of that, on Dale Drive (Old Highway 45), you'll discover Finders Keepers Flea Market & Antique Mall, also in a new (and air-conditioned!) location. Moving into Meridian itself, you’ll want to check out Hidden Treasures Flea Market, another large, climate-controlled space with an ever-evolving group of vendors. It’s on Old Marion Road, just off Highway 45. Downtown Meridian features several different antiquing experiences, including an imposing, century-old building on Front Street. The Hulett occupies the former home of the Hulett Furniture Company, a family-owned store that closed in 2010 after 125 years in business. It’s now a fine interiors and antiques market, with several antiques and collectibles booths on the first floor and a fascinating variety of furniture and art on the second and third floors. It also still sells new furniture, mostly by custom order. Plan around Estate Sales Estate sales occur just about every weekend in the Meridian area. In fact, most weekends feature several. Before you nail down the dates of your visit, check the sales schedules at EstateSales.net. You’ll also want to consult craigslist and the online classified ads section of the local newspaper, The Meridian Star. Happy hunting for junkers, DIYers, and antiques aficionados.