ANTIQUES: IT'S GOLD IF IT'S OLD

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- There's almost nothing that Jan McKernan wouldn't collect in the way of antiques.

From tin toys to Teddy bears, books to baskets, walking sticks to stoneware, pipes to pewter, and everything in between, McKernan's Cape Girardeau home is chocked full of antiques.

Wooden cabinets and other antique furniture can be found everywhere. Two old wooden shutters dress up a corner of the living room, along with a wide array of other items.

A collection of inkwells graces another portion of the living room and antique ice skates hang in the family room. Old, wooden game boards decorate her home, including one that dates back to Civil War days. Every corner of the house displays a cornucopia of antiques.

An antique dealer and a consummate collector, McKernan has been collecting for about 20 years. She has been an antique dealer for the past four years.

"I don't think I have too many pieces of store-bought furniture," said McKernan.

Heirlooms from her grandparents sparked her interest in antiques. "Then I just kind of went at it with a mad vengeance," she said. "I like the one-of-a-kind type things that you don't see all the time."

At that time, in the early 1970s, McKernan and her family were living in Lincoln, Neb. "I went to estate sales and did a lot of antique-store buying," she said. "I went to a lot of (antique) shows."

McKernan was a regular customer at antique stores. "In Lincoln, I was a friend to all the dealers," she remembered.

She began collecting inkwells while on a trip to the Bahamas. McKernan estimates she now has about 60 inkwells.

She has about the same number of Toby jugs. McKernan said she started collecting the decorative jugs because one of her sons is named Toby.

She collects Easter memorabilia for her other son, Jason, who was born on Easter.

"I just kept branching out into other things that I found desirable to display," she said. "A lot of my collections just happened."

McKernan and her family lived in Lincoln for 14 years before moving to Cape Girardeau in 1982.

"I had three garage sales before I moved," said McKernan. Still, the movers ended up moving quite a load, 30,000 pounds in all. A normal household has about 8,000 to 12,000 pounds of belongings and furniture, she said.

"When I have to dust and clean my house, I just want to sell it all," she lightheartedly said.

McKernan has lots of antiques, but not all of them are collections. "They say a collection is four or more of anything, but I don't call it a collection unless I have a dozen or more of them," she explained.

By her own definition, McKernan has 19 collections in all.

McKernan is fond of primitives early wooden and tin ware and handmade, simple furniture. "A lot of the good primitives come from the early 1800s. I have a lot of things that are probably in the 1850s category."

McKernan also likes collecting antique toys. "I really like tin (toys); I guess because they are so colorful."

One of her most treasured possessions is a Victorian-era baby rattle. The rattle noise comes from small pieces of gravel inside the metal cage-like end of the toy.

McKernan has a number of antique Teddy bears dating back to the early 1900s.

The Cape Girardeau woman also admits to a fondness for vintage clothes. "I like to wear them," she pointed out. McKernan says she particularly likes the fashions of the 1920s, from flapper dresses to jewelry.

Whether it's a Magic Lantern, a primitive sort of slide projector, or a spice cabinet, McKernan finds special enjoyment in antiques. "I just like antiques for their sentiment and their charm," she said.

McKernan said it was only natural that she would set up shop as an antique dealer. As a collector, she would often sell or trade items to dealers.

For about a year she operated an antique store in Cape Girardeau called Over the Hill. "I really didn't care for the shop; I had to be there every day," she said.

These days, McKernan and a number of other dealers share space and sell their antiques at Heartland Antique Co-op. But McKernan still finds time to add to her own collections.

McKernan said she often finds herself wondering about the history of a particular piece she owns, like a wooden bowl that dates back to 1857. "I love stuff like that. These are the pieces, you wonder how many hands it has gone through," she said.

McKernan said she enjoys arranging her antiques and the satisfaction of "preserving a part of history."