Sally Jo Burton

The B is for Burton. Sally has been the person who notices the good chair in a back room since she was pricing household sales for other dealers. She opened her own door on Nicholas Avenue so the good chair could stay in Marquette County a little longer.

She buys furniture, silver, ceramics, textiles, pictures, and jewelry. She writes down where each thing came from — a library in Grosse Pointe, a house in Marquette, a collection that was being divided — and she does not improve the story later. If a repair is old, the tag says so. If a monogram is on the silver, it stays.

Sally B Antiques does not sell archaeological objects, grave goods, or anything whose recent history cannot be told. “Antiques,” here, means things made to be used in a house or on a working boat, and old enough to have a past.

She is in the shop Tuesday through Saturday. Larger pieces can be seen on Sunday if you ask ahead. Monday the door is locked and she is usually at a sale.