If you’re heading down US 127 this weekend, it’s very likely that you’re going to notice yard sales throughout our area. It’s no coincidence that everyone has decided to sell things at the same time… it’s part of the 127 Yard Sale.
This event is touted as the Longest Yard Sale in the World; from Michigan all the way down to Alabama, the sales route stretches 690 miles.
Along the way, people looking for deals can find special areas, where hundreds of vendors are set up. Here locally, we have one of those vendor stops at the Van Wert County Fairgrounds. Vendors were setting up on Wednesday for a busy weekend, which has become a tradition over the years at the fairgrounds.
"It grows every year, and it grew again this year; we have over 120 vendors occupying about 350 spots on the fairgrounds," said Mike Poling, a manager for the Van Wert County Fair. "We’ve got five buildings full of garage sales, antiques, different merchandise - it’s a great event for us."
One vendor says that he’s been setting up shop for the 127 yard sale since it started, and is happy to see familiar faces coming back year after year for the sale.
"People will look us up, we’re in the same location every year here in this red building, and they kind of remember that and we see them," said Don Jellison. "It’s amazing how far people will come just to do this, and the weather is usually good. We’ve had very little rain over the past few years, so it’s just been an ideal setting."
The yard sales will continue until August 8th.
