It is generally acknowledged that Concord is a town like no other. Just a few steps down the road from Concord Academy is Main Street and its many shops—each with its own fascinating history. One such store is Walden Street Antiques. A small shop with a sign of red and gold, it is hidden atop a narrow staircase. Upon entering, one will find a variety of customers scouting and fiddling among its curiosities. The store’s owner, an old woman with bright eyes and a beaming smile, is Bette Ann Weiner.
An antique is any item that has existed for more than one hundred years. Despite the common misconception, the term ‘vintage’ is not equivalent to ‘antique’, for it is defined by being less than 100 years old. Antique dealers, by the definition of National Careers Service, buy items from salerooms, auctions, markets, and private owners and sell them in their stores. In addition to auctioning, Ann Weiner often goes into people’s homes when they have passed away at the request of their families. “Going through [these people’s] possessions allows you to see their living style and have a guess at what they were like,” she said. Often, these legacies are opportunities for rediscovery and reconnection for the family; however, Ann Weiner joked that they can also tear families apart. For example, she once discovered a room full of silver hidden away from the deceased woman’s whole family in the bulkhead of the house. Some notable people whose houses Ann Weiner has cleaned out include Thomas J. Hudner Jr, a Concordian and the only recipient of the purple heart in the Korean War; Celtics legend John "Hondo" Havlicek; and a daughter of the FAO Schwarz family, whose former residence was—to Ann Weiner's amazement—a large playhouse made in Victorian style. This made each antique object more fascinating. Their value seemed to be elevated from mere numbers to something more human: bits and pieces left behind as a reminder of these people and their stories.
The Walden Street Antiques store itself has unique aspects, too. Ann Weiner explained that each of the three antique stores on Main Street are unique because of their different management styles. Whereas some stores might separate antiques by dealers, every antique is melted into the space in Walden Street Antiques. Despite there being several other dealers who work with Ann Weiner, she doesn’t like to segregate their findings. They fit seamlessly as part of one thematic background, similar to how antiques fit into the context of history and culture. In addition, Ann Weiner was proud to say that everything she displays is a true antique—each object is over 100 years old. However, her pride doesn’t come from the price tag but rather as the result of her searches: a collection of authenticity that she can stake her name on. That authenticity is what provokes one to wonder what might have happened to these objects. The shelves of Walden Street Antiques are not simple dust and silver, but real pieces of people that exist beyond their owners and tangible preservations of history.