Piece By Piece, The Ship Is Auctioned Off

As soon as I walked into The Ship's dining room, I knew I had to have it. One of more than 350 items up for auction Wednesday, the Goose Island beer tap was mine for the right price. There was one problem. I was there to report the news, not buy it.

In January, The Ship Restaurant on Route 1 in Lynnfield served its last meal. Opened in 1925 as a refreshment stand on the Newburyport Turnpike, it will soon be torn down and replaced with retail space, a coffee shop, and a bank. Only the permitting process stands between The Ship and The Bulldozer. Wednesday the Edward F. Smith Auction Company was there to sell off the parts that made the restaurant a memorable night out for many area diners.

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Forty people registered to bid, putting down a $200 deposit and getting a yellow card with a number for bidding. Playing the roll of Monty Hall in this Route 1 version of Let's Make a Deal was veteran auctioneer Ed Smith. The only person in the room wearing a suit, Smith pushed his rolling metal steps from room-to-room, then climbed them to begin the auction. Playing the roll of Carol Merrill in this drama was "Jim," an employee of the auction company. As Ed announced each item, Jim held it up so everyone could see. Carol would have approved.

The rules were simple. The auction company wanted cash. And they wanted you to take your purchase home with you, or at the very latest have it gone in 24 hours. Let the bidding begin.

It started with item one, two long-handle strainers. Smith would often start things by saying, "Buck-a-piece-quick" and many of the items went for less than a $1. Things like silverware, cups, and plates often sold for pennies a piece. And everything went. Ramekins, platters, large bowls, small bows, flour scoops, ladles, pie servers, tongs, the booths, the lights, and even the child seats (which went for $22.50 each). There was one mandolin slicer but 222 bread and butter plates.

After auctioning off The Ship's wheel for $200, Smith was headed for the bar area but got side tracked when he saw the restrooms. Next thing you knew he was taking bids for the hand dryers and baby-changing tables.

He eventually made it to the bar (don't we all). You can no longer have a "Ship Martini," a blend of Belvedere Vodka, olive juice, and blue cheese olives. But you could have bought the glass it was served in, along with 29 others. There were 325 flute glasses, 60 wine glasses, and 192 water glasses.

And then came the bidding on the Goose Island tap, which apparently was part of a four-tap apparatus they called a "bev-air 72-inch back bar ref." It's probably good I wasn't a registered bidder. The Goose tap went for $600. I'd have a hard time explaining that one at home.

The auction went on for almost four hours with the last item No. 350, five 30 by 48-inch wood top tables. It was time to turn out the lights, which by the way went for $10 a piece.

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