Selma, NC & Beyond: The 301 Endless Yard Sale Reaches Year 10

Crowds at the 2021 "301 Endless Yard Sale" shop along a row of vendor booths. Source: Ashby Brame, Johnston County NC
Crowds at the 2021 "301 Endless Yard Sale" shop along a row of vendor booths. Source: Ashby Brame, Johnston County NC

This year’s 301 Endless Yard Sale is set for June 17 and 18, 2022. Along the 100-mile plus stretch of highway, the event offers deals, antiques, collectibles, DIY furniture, crafts, and more.

Founded in Selma, North Carolina, and now hosted by a variety of towns located along US 301 in the counties of Johnston, Halifax, Wilson, Nash, and Harnett, the annual 301 Endless Yard Sale takes place the 3rd Friday and Saturday of June annually.

Celebrating a mile-stone 10th anniversary this year, the event attracts over 15,000 shoppers, and over 2,500 vendors, every year to sell or buy. People often stay overnight in the area to take advantage of the two full days of the sale, and hopefully cover the entire 100+ miles.

“The museum has seen many great benefits from being a vendor location along the sale route in the northern part of Johnston County. With over 2,000 visitors a day, artists and local vendors have been able to promote their goods and leave with a return on their investment. But the greatest benefit for us is the new faces, and friends we make, who inevitably come back again to shop or tour the museum”, stated Melody Worthington, Director of the Kenly Tobacco Farm Life Museum.

The Tobacco Farm Life Museum is just one of the unique stops along the 100-mile journey for 301 shoppers. Locations for vendors with the four other participating counties are posted on the 301endlessyard.com website, which prior to and during the sale will see over 100,000 unique visitors. Another source of information for shoppers is the Facebook page with more than 22,000 followers; the very active page has become a planning tool where shoppers share photos, information on vendors, and details on the sale with friends and family.

“This is a 10-year successful event promoting the beauty of North Carolina’s back roads and the friendliness of our residents. We pride ourselves with bringing in people from over 20 states who not only shop the sale, but eat in local restaurants and stay in local hotels,” said Tommy Abdalla, a local businessman and hobbyist antique collector. Tommy organizes the vendor location at South Johnston High School in Benson, “You see things that you grew up with like farm tools, fishing equipment, collectables, furniture, antiques, toys; most anything imaginable. Personally I found a local cookbook that had several of my aunt’s recipes in it!”

“The five Visitors Bureau work together to promote the event, encourage vendor locations, and keep an open line of communication between local stores, restaurants, residents, and county officials,” said Ashby Brame, Director of Marketing & PR for the Johnston County Visitors Bureau, “but, we’re just the middleman for sale. Really, we could probably step out of the way and everyone would still show up. People are very enthusiastic about this sale.”

Shoppers interested in participating on the 17th and 18th, as well as people interested in being a vendor along the route, can visit www.301endlessyardsale.com or follow the Facebook page.

 

Source: Johnston County Visitors Bureau

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About Kay Whatley 2309 Articles
Kay Whatley serves as Editor and Reporter with The Grey Area News. Kay is a published author with over 20 years of experience in the publishing industry. Kay Whatley is wife to Frank Whatley, founder of The Grey Area™ newspaper and The Grey Area News online news website.