"American Pickers"... in Barnegat?!

If you think nothing exciting ever happens in New Jersey, especially in Ocean County, or more specifically in Barnegat, then you were not privy to the fact that Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz from the History Channel’s smash hit TV show "American Pickers" were in town this week. But let’s be honest, practically everybody knew they were here.

Photo by Kelley Anne
American Pickers TV host Mike Wolfe films in 
Barnegat for the upcoming season.

Photographs of the "American Pickers’" white Antique Archaeology van, sitting in the parking lot of the Holiday Inn on Route 72 in Manahawkin, were floating around Facebook during the beginning of the week. So when my boss gave me permission to cut out of work early and check out the scene on Tuesday, I made some inquiries and quickly learned the Pickers were filming at First National Antique Restoration on Bay Avenue in Barnegat — just a few streets away from my childhood home.

"American Pickers" captures the work of professional antique pickers Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz as they travel across the U.S., digging through cellars, scrapyards, barnyards and sheds, looking for hidden treasures that have been long forgotten about. Hoping to "recycle America," the duo mingles with interesting collectors, historians and hoarders alike to discover and restore antiques that tell a unique story about America's history. Pickers, or modern archaeologists, are considered crucial in the antique business. Without them, many antique shops would have collapsed years ago, and many of the beloved artifacts found in museums and collector’s cabinets around the world may have been lost forever.

Upon arrival at First National Antique Restoration, I realized I wasn’t the only one interested in catching a glimpse of the TV show hosts or their white van, which was sitting diagonally in the parking lot, looking like a giant piece of fan bait — and fan bait it was. People young and old from all across town scattered up-and-down Memorial Drive where Wolfe and Fritz were filming. The on-lookers even strolled through shop owner Jon Szalay’s parking lot where they stopped to take pictures of themselves in front of the show’s car. I even saw one guy trying to push his minivan out of the driveway, which had apparently seized and died on the spot. Hey, you can’t blame the car engine for being excited, too.

"I was heading to Curves this morning when I saw the 'American Pickers' van," said local resident Laraine Harris. "So when my friend gave me a call, I figured we better stop by and see what was going on," she added, posing for a picture in front of the show’s van with friend Carol Mills, also a local resident.



Photo by Kelley Anne 
Shop owner Jon Szalay continues working while 
on-lookers stop by to take pictures.

Luckily, Szalay didn’t seem too worried about all the unusual attention. He simply said hello to everyone who walked by or asked him a question about the Pickers before continuing on with his work. Besides, he and Wolfe have been friends for years. The two met about 15 years ago at an antique motorcycle meet in Oley, Pennsylvania. Wolfe and "Jersey Jon" as Wolfe affectionately calls him, realized they were interested in many of the same things, including authentic, quality antiques, restoration and early motorcycles like Emblems, Indians and Harley Davidsons. After their first meeting, Wolfe and Szalay kept bumping into each other and eventually started picking together all across the country.

"Mike is really busy," said Szalay. "It was three years ago when he called me up and said the History Channel bought six episodes (of 'American Pickers'). I’m his best friend, and now I only get to see him maybe once a month. But I’m proud of him. I want all of my friends to succeed in life," he added, while torching a 1912 Emblem motorcycle dogleg into its rightful shape — a restoration project he's working on for a client in Arizona.

Szalay’s passion for antiques took shape in the form of furniture building when he was just 14-years-old. He began borrowing a few of his father’s woodworking tools and restoring furniture for income during high school. In 1979, when Szalay was only 17, he decided to purchase an old bank building, circa 1914, in downtown Barnegat, to continue working professionally. Szalay owned and operated the antique and restoration shop for 26 years before he decided it was too much trouble to run both. Now he focuses solely on restorations, and the shop is simply his home and studio, open only by appointment. Although the shop displays many "closed" signs, people still try knocking on the doors in hopes of perusing the many fine antiques the owner has accrued over the years. Luckily, Szalay and his neighbors look out for each other’s property.

"That’s a no trespassing sign," said Szalay’s neighbor, Christina Demopoulos, pointing to a sign on the shop’s front door and sporting an I’m-super-serious glare. "I’m the pit bull, and I watch over the outside perimeter of this place," she added.

Photo by Kelley Anne
Barnegat residents Laraine Harris and Carol 
Mills pose for a picture.

Over the course of our conversation, I could sense Demopoulos warming up to my presence, which was lucky for me. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to schmooze my way into an interview with the Pickers, but I did win a big smile from Fritz, who passed me by after dodging a sea of excited fans and heading onto his bus. Still I decided to hang around and snap photos of Wolfe while the show crew filmed take after take of what looked like a personal interview. But I was quickly shooed away with the rest of the crowd after Wolfe complained we were standing in his view and distracting him from his lines.

Under sworn secrecy, Szalay wasn’t able to tell me much about the specifics of the filming, except that they are working on a special project together. According to Szalay, the episode will air some time during season four of the show. So keep your eyes peeled for the mention of Barnegat in the upcoming episodes of "American Pickers!"

This article was published in The SandPaper.