For more than six decades, Sam Schnaidt’s life has been dictated by his own gavel. His future was set in stone when he bought his first antique car at the age of 12.
Today, Apple Tree Auction Center stands as a representation of his career in the auction business, a legacy that will continue on thanks to the three generations of his family that help manage the business.
Schnaidt’s career began at an old fairground in Decatur, Indiana, in 1963.
“There were only two auction schools in the country at the time,” Schnaidt said. “One in Indiana and one in Mason City, Iowa.”
After returning to Ohio, he was told to get licensed before the state would require it the following year.
“All the judge asked was whether I was a good character,” said Schnaidt. “I said yes and, $10 later, I got my license.”
Schnaidt’s passion for antiques started at an early age.
“My parents were antique collectors, and my dad got me into antique toys,” Schnaidt said. “That way I wouldn’t be the little brat who didn’t want to go to auctions.”
The “a-ha” moment for Schnaidt came when he sold a car for $100, only a year after he bought it for $20.
“I thought, ‘Man, this is a way to get rich,’” said Schnaidt.
By 1966, Schaidt and his wife, Heidi, were conducting auctions out of local homes before opening an antique shop of their own in 1971. 12 years later, the couple launched Apple Tree Auction Center, a full-service auction house at 1625 West Church Street in Newark.
Apple Tree specializes in everything that Schnaidt describes as “saleable.” This includes anything from jewelry and coins to dolls and safe deposit boxes.
Apple Tree Auction is a family business.
“When our son and daughter were about 9 or 10, I told them if they wanted a car at 16, they’d have to earn it,” Schnaidt said. His children, David and Debbie, ran tickets, clerked auctions and moved furniture until they saved enough to buy their own cars. At that point, they had fallen in love with the business.
Both kids attended auction school in the ’90s and joined the Apple Tree Auction team.
Debbie is currently the vice president of Apple Tree and sits on the state’s Auctioneer’s Commission. Her son and daughter-in-law oversee the jewelry and deposit box department.
“I don’t know if anyone enjoys it as much as I do, but I think they come close,” said Schnaidt.
Although Apple Tree Auction was built on tradition, it has had no problem embracing change. Before Schnaidt’s son, David, passed away from cancer in 2013, he suggested adding online bidding.
“I told him he was crazy. I said it would slow us down,” Schaidt said. “I told him, ‘If it works, you get all the credit. If it doesn’t, you catch all the hell.’ In three months, I was singing his praises.”
The pivot to online auctioning really helped the business during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the online auctions draw as many as 200 bidders a day from across the country.
Schnaidt doesn’t see other online bidding platforms, like eBay, as a threat.
“It takes some people away from buying, sure, but it also creates more people buying,” said Schnaidt.
However, there is still uncertainty about what the future of auctioneering holds.
“The rule of thumb is that everything is worth around twenty percent less than what it would’ve been worth twenty years ago,” Schnaidt said. He blames this partially on the fact that the younger generations aren’t as interested in antiques.
Still, Schnaidt still appreciates when people come to Apple Tree Auction Center and bid in person.
“I see both regulars and first-timers,” said Schnaidt, “It’s always fun.”
Whether it’s the thrill of a rare find or the satisfaction of helping a family downsize their estate, every day brings something new. “We never know what we’re going to see when we make a call,” he says. “And that’s probably what keeps me going the most.”
Selah Griffin writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.