Giant Schaumburg garage sale to start a day early
Before the Woodstock music festival, before Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, there was the Timbercrest and Woods subdivisions' giant coordinated garage sale in Schaumburg.
The annual bargain shopping opportunity celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend, just ahead of the 40th anniversaries of those other historical footnotes.
An average of 120 families among the 580-home neighborhood typically participate in any given year, organizer Rich Gerber said. In recent years, about 5,000 visitors have flooded the area during the first weekend of June.
The subdivisions are south of Schaumburg Road, west of Roselle Road and north of Weathersfield Way - just west of Schaumburg's Town Square development.
One new thing this year is the addition of an extra day - Friday, June 5 - to what was previously only a two-day event. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.
In previous years, Fridays were cherished stalking time for the expert early birds who planned where to strike on Saturday morning by observing sellers setting up on each street.
Residents are now able to do their part for these die-hard shoppers by putting out a list at TimbercrestWoods.com.
Gerber said there seems to be more larger items for sale this year, like furniture and dining room sets.
"With the economy the way it is, perhaps people are simply selling larger items that they haven't used for awhile or are preparing to downsize to a smaller home," Gerber said.
Among the more distinctive items for sale are a 1974 Corvette, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, Elvis Presley records and an antique organ. The majority of what's for sale remains normal household items and clothing, though.
The sale is always a venue for the unusual and unexpected, however.
Last year, one family had a classic Cadillac Eldorado covered up in their garage during the sale. It wasn't for sale itself, but one woman recognized its shape under the cover and asked if the owners would consider selling, Gerber said.
Though the family hadn't considered parting with the car, the woman returned later in the day with her husband, who collected Eldorados.
By that time, the owners were thinking about selling the car and talking about how little they used it and how much room in their garage it took. Within hours, a sale had been worked out, Gerber said.
Another of his favorite stories is about an Iowa man who bought a family's camping trailer on the first day of the sale just to store all the other things he expected to buy over the weekend.
Gerber believes this garage sale is the largest in the nation organized by regular residents and not professional vendors.