The Quaker Antique Mall does not announce itself from the road. You have to know it is there. Tucked 200 feet off Route 309 on Tollgate Road in Richland Township, the 12,000-square-foot building sits behind a parking lot that fills up on Saturdays with license plates from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Delaware. Inside, over 100 dealers sell antiques, vintage goods, and collectibles across a sprawling former hosiery mill that dates back to the 1930s.
Dave and Gail Snyder have owned the mall since October 1997. They were customers first. Bob and Mildred Nace opened the Quaker Antique Mall in July 1994, converting a building that had housed a hosiery mill in the back and a retail clothing store in the front. The Snyders became regulars, then friends with the Naces, and eventually bought the business. Two renovations later, the place is cleaner and better organized than most antique malls you will walk into, but the bones of the old mill (the high ceilings, the layout that rewards wandering) are still there.
What You Will Find
The inventory covers the full range. Furniture, china, glassware, pottery, jewelry, vintage prints, books, tools, linens, paper ephemera, primitives, postcards, sheet music, cameras, fishing equipment, toys, Disney collectibles, Byer's Choice figurines, holiday items, baskets, records, lamps, and more. One booth will have carefully curated mid-century modern pieces. The next will have a bin of old greeting cards priced at a dollar each. The mall separates newer items into their own section, keeping the rest of the floor strictly antique and vintage.
The aisles are roomy and the booths are uncrowded, which is not always the case at multi-dealer antique malls. The staff will carry your finds to the front counter so you do not have to lug a lamp through the store while you keep shopping. Gail Snyder manages the daily operations. Dave handles the business side and maintenance. Their philosophy is straightforward. As Gail has put it: we are not in business to fool our customers.
Prices are reasonable. Serious collectors come for the furniture and jewelry. Casual browsers come because spending an hour walking through other people's old things is one of the more pleasant ways to burn a Saturday afternoon. Many customers describe the experience as a sentimental journey, finding the same dishware their grandmother had, or a toy they played with as a kid.
The East Broad Street Antique District
The Quaker Antique Mall is the anchor, but it is not the only reason to drive to Quakertown for antiques. Downtown, along East Broad Street near the intersection with Hellertown Avenue, a cluster of antique shops has been operating for years.
Old Soul Antiques at 141 East Broad Street is the biggest. Owner Jason Moffett opened the shop in May 2018 in a building that had been a corner grocery store since the 1880s. Two floors and 12 themed rooms hold roughly 90 vendors selling everything from 1950s dishware and military items to vintage pinball machines and pedal cars. Notable pieces have included an 1887 barber chair and a 1940s soap box derby car. There is a second-floor art gallery featuring local artists, interactive displays like a strength tester and a working steam engine toy, and a shop dog named Holley who greets visitors at the door.
Dunngeon Antiques at 132 East Broad is one of the longest-running shops in town, owned by Denise Dunn. The inventory runs from tin signs and Lionel Trains to pocket watches, vintage military items, western boots, and furniture. They also offer free upholstery estimates.
2nd Life Antiques and Collectibles at 200 East Broad takes a different approach. Co-owner Phil Schubert stocks only upscale antiques, no newer collectibles or mass-produced items. The space has an open-concept design with black ceilings and white pegboard walls that make the inventory feel like it is in a gallery rather than a shop. There is free coffee while you browse and a 1950s Soda Shop room that is worth the visit on its own. Schubert has been vocal about his vision for the town: I want this to be the go-to place where people can come and spend the day.
The Pickers Junction, which relocated from Sellersville, rounds out the district at 141 East Broad with vintage finds and a loyal following.
More Than Antiques
Quakertown has built a downtown that gives you reasons to stay after the antiquing is done. The Trolley Barn Public Market at 116 East Broad Street is a restored trolley barn housing over a dozen food vendors including barbecue, ramen, and Mediterranean cuisine. Sine's 5 and 10 at 236 West Broad has been open since 1912: an actual five-and-dime store with an original soda fountain, over 200 model airplanes hanging from the ceiling, and vintage photographs covering the walls. It is a living museum that still sells penny candy.
The Quakertown Farmers Market and Flea Market at 201 Station Road has been running since 1932. Over 100 indoor departments and up to 450 outdoor flea market vendors operate Friday through Sunday year-round. The Karlton Cafe on West Broad occupies the historic Karlton Theater building and serves farm-to-table food.
All of it is walkable. The Broad Street antique shops are within a few blocks of each other with metered street parking and a public lot. The Quaker Antique Mall is a short drive from downtown, off Route 309.
Thirty Years and Counting
The antique scene in Quakertown is not new. In 1990, the town had one antique shop. By 1995, the Quakertown Antique and Gift District Guide listed 17 shops, and the Morning Call was writing about how collectors from four states were making the drive. Some of those original shops are gone now. Richland Antiques and Collectibles, which had over 60 vendors on North West End Boulevard, closed permanently in December 2023.
But the core has held. The Quaker Antique Mall has been in continuous operation for over 30 years. Old Soul, Dunngeon, 2nd Life, and The Pickers Junction keep the Broad Street district alive. And the Snyders keep showing up, opening the doors, and letting 100-plus dealers fill a 1930s hosiery mill with things that other people made, used, loved, and eventually let go of.
The Quaker Antique Mall is open Monday and Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with extended hours until 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday. The phone number is 215-538-9445.
