Restoration Shop/Auto Freight Building

Issaquah History Museums’ Restoration Shop
to Hold Old Junk Sale & Open House

Issaquah, Wash. – On Sunday, June 24, 2007, the Issaquah History Museums will hold an open house and Old Junk Sale at its Restoration Shop facility, located in downtown Issaquah on the corner of Bush Street and First Avenue, next to the Issaquah Food Bank. Sale hours are 10 AM to 4 PM. Sale proceeds will benefit the Restoration Shop, where antique machinery, oversized artifacts and rolling stock are
stored, maintained, and refurbished by volunteers.

 Among the old items for sale are:
·      A working blacksmith forge (pictured at right)
·      Large triple-block wood pulley
·      Flat-belt pulleys
·      Old tools
·      Saws
·      Stoves
·      And many other items (a sampling pictured below)

(Items for sale are not part of the museums’ permanent artifact collection; they are items that are either duplicated in our collection or are not pertinent to local history).

About the Restoration Shop

One of the Issaquah History Museums’ best kept secrets, the Restoration Shop contains a variety of tools, treasures, and vintage working machinery. Open house visitors can admire a set of Burma Shave signs, one of old Issaquah’s original wooden water pipes, a vintage Fairmont speeder used in track-work and repair, and the Issaquah Volunteer Fire Department’s first host cart, circa 1915. The Restoration Shop boasts a working forge, antique drill press, and foot-powered grinding stone. Also on display will be a 1920s Climax speeder engine, a restored 1948 Ford tractor, and several hit-n-miss engines.

 The restoration shop is located in the historic Issaquah Auto Freight building and was once used by the company as a warehouse and garage. The building was constructed in the 1930s. Its heavy roof beams were salvaged from the Black Diamond coal bunkers.

 For more information about the restoration shop or the sale, contact the Issaquah History Museums at 425/392-3500 or info@issquahhistory.org.