A simple sign at the bottom of the hill along Highway 80 in Big Sandy lets passers by know it's sale night at Saxon Auction House. Prospective buyers come from around the region for the regular sales and for the home cooking of auctioneer Joe Saxon. Andrew D. Brosig/The Daily Sentinel

BIG SANDY – Peeling paint, bullet holes and a healthy coating of rich, red rust seems to tickle the fancy of veteran auctioneer Joe Saxon.

The bargain-hunting businessman finds delight in decay and satisfaction in selling unwanted stuff.

He oversees what’s described as the longest running auction in Texas on the second Saturday of every month, in a solitary metal building atop a grassy hill in Big Sandy.

From corncobs to coffins, he’s got it all for sale.

And for the right price, lucky bidders can tote an item home for their collection.

“We sell everything to the walls, every sale,” he said with a wink. “There are no minimum bids. We take checks, cash, Visa, Mastercard, gold, silver and diesel.”

ENDURING INTEREST

Saxon grew up attending auctions with his folks, and remembers the moment he realized there’s cash in cast-offs.

His teen-aged epiphany emerged one evening after an auctioneer volunteered him to help sell a couch.

“I got in the middle, trying to hold it up in the air,” he said. “It was really heavy … it took forever to sell. I ended up helping out the rest of the night, and she gave me $2 when it was over.”

The experience sparked a passion for picking that would last a lifetime.

“I didn’t really care about the sales at first, but it grows on you,” he said, grinning widely from a cavernous warehouse packed to the gills with goodies.

His company, Saxon & Associates Inc., deals with estates, business liquidations and fundraisers, both in and out of state.

Offerings can include primitives, wagons, antiques, guns, knives, coins, toys, household goods, advertising, high-end glass, artwork, musical instruments and jewelry.

Events kick off at 5:30 p.m. the second Saturday of the month at the auction house, 310 W. Broadway in Big Sandy, but shoppers can show up at 4:30 p.m. if they want to buy dinner.

Auctions can last well into the morning, or whenever the last item sells.

“It’s a lot of work,” Saxon said. “I’ve tried to retire for the last 10 years, but they keep pulling me in.”

Some of his favorite finds are on display in the front lobby: vintage toys, old signs and a peeling, life-size plastic horse from Indiana named “Bid ‘em Up.”

A taxidermy squirrel named Nicky hangs above a small corner café area, but shoppers aren’t surprised when it disappears, then reappears in random places, sparking laughter and lively conversations.

The wide-eyed rodent isn’t for sale but just about everything else is, for the right price.

“We don’t do garage sale junk,” Saxon said. “We turn a lot of stuff down. I didn’t want this to be a regular auction house. I wanted it to stand out, be a leader. We wanted to be different.”

Saxon’s auctions appeal to a varied clientele that includes locals and out-of-towners, all of whom can view online photos of items a few days before they hit the block.

Bargain hunter Kidron Cummings, 52, drove in from Gilmer with his wife and friends to check out the deals.

“We’re looking for anything,” Cummings said. “We’re fixing our house up.”

There’s value in old things, Saxon said, but items are actually worth only what someone is willing to pay.

“Antiques are like roller coasters,” he said. “They always come back around.”

TALES FROM THE ROAD

Saxon’s seemingly insatiable quest for the unusual sometimes makes for hilarious travel tales.

“I laugh all the time,” said wife, Vickie. “It’s almost like Christmas throughout the year. He’s a fantastic auctioneer, but it’s his personality that makes it so fun. I laugh all the time.”

Saxon seems to have an unending inventory of travel stories, including the time he and a buddy stopped at a roadside junk store, only to realize it was actually someone’s home.

“I opened the door and walked in and there’s this kid, about 16 or 17, sitting there and he says, ‘Daddy, there’s somebody in the house,'” Saxon said. “We barely got out the door before here comes Daddy.”

No shots were fired, thanks to a lot of fast-talking from two Texans a long way from home.

Sometimes Saxon’s finds seem to be the stuff of legends.

“The strangest thing I ever got here was a bronze deer head from the Chicken Ranch,” sale regular Stace Hutson, of Tyler, said jokingly. “I was scared the preacher would see it, so I got rid of it. But seriously, we (with wife, Marsha) buy a lot of stuff for our house. We get some really good deals.”

For the unfamiliar, the “Chicken Ranch” is a famous brothel that put Fayette County, Texas, on the map.

“It just never ends,” a grinning Mrs. Saxon said, shaking her head.

LIKE FAMILY

Big Sandy auctioneer Cecil Bishop started the sale in 1969, attracting a crowd of 10 and earning a whopping $136 for the efforts.

Almost 47 years later, the wheeling and dealing continues.

“Presently, about half (attendees) are dealers; the other half are collectors,” Saxon said. “We usually set up about 120 chairs. Chairs are mostly full, and people are standing up around the wall.”

With a constant flow of merchandise, behind the scenes prep is never-ending.

“I hate to say what was the strangest thing that ever came through here,” said longtime cashier-accountant Peggy Barber. “It’s hard to say … there have been so many.”

Several coffins hit the auction block over the years, Ms. Barber said, including one that found a new life as a coffee table and another as a Halloween prop.

Saxon said he’s always surprised at the things people want to collect.

“I know we sold a pile of corn cobs one time for $40,” Saxon said. “I have no idea why anyone would want them, but I just told them (audience), ‘We’re going to sell a box of toilet paper her,e’ and people started bidding on it.”

Regulars seem to be treated more like family than customers.

Prior to sale time, a few moments are set aside to acknowledge life events, such as birthdays, anniversaries and goodbyes.

The deaths of long-time customers are commemorated with small name plaques affixed to a memorial board.

Saxon said one of his most memorable moments was the night the late K.C. Kyle, 86, of Tenaha, burst into tears when the crowd celebrated his birthday.

“He said it was the first time anybody had sang Happy Birthday to him in his life,” Saxon said. “We made sure his wife, Birdie, got the same thing on her birthday.”

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