Collectors and pickers alike will have plenty of items to browse through when the Benicia Historical Museum hosts its “White Camel” Trash to Treasure Vintage Sale. (Photo courtesy of Benicia Historical Museum)

Devoted antique collectors should mark Sunday, July 15 on their calendars. The Benicia Historical Museum is hosting its first-ever “White Camel” Trash to Treasure Vintage Sale.

The museum is taking the concept of the white elephant sale to a new level by offering a variety of vintage goods on the grounds that once provided stables for the U.S. Army’s experimental Camel Corps. In other words, the event will consist of historical items being sold in a building with a lot of history.

Elizabeth d’Huart, Benicia Historical Museum’s executive director, said the idea came from two board members who were inspired by the annual White Elephant Sale at the Oakland Museum of California.

“They said, ‘We really have the perfect venue for this kind of sale,’” she said.

D’Huart noted that in an era where people most of their goods off the internet and clear their houses, garage sales and flea markets remain popular.

The items on sale will not be from any of the museum’s collections but rather gently-used goods donated by local merchants and artisans. Patrons will find a variety of goods, including household items, books, magazines, electronics, furniture, dishes and holiday items. Among the more notable artifacts available include a large dollhouse, a telescope with a camera attached to take long-distance shots, table linens from the 1930s and ‘40s and a collection of dolls based on the Campbell’s Soup kids who frequently were used in the company’s advertising from 1905 to the 1950s and sporadically ever since.

D’Huart said the sale will feature “anything that people thought other people might enjoy and pay for.”

“The range and the variety of goods that we have will be attractive to a lot of people,” she said.

Most of the objects are currently in boxes, but d’Huart said they will be brought out the Friday before the sale to be priced and grouped.

The funds raised will help finance permanent and temporary exhibits at the museum, including an enlarged exhibit on transportation with a special focus on famed shipbuilder Matthew Turner and a new exhibition opening July 31 called “Benicia’s Gold Rush Story,” which focuses on Benicia’s role in the California Gold Rush.

The sale will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, July 15 in the Benicia Historical Museum’s Stone Hall, located at 2060 Camel Road. Hungry and thirsty patrons will be able to purchase doughnuts and coffee in the morning, which will give way to hot dogs, chips and beverages in the afternoon. For more information, visitbeniciahistoricalmuseum.org or call 745-5435.

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