Northam Secondhand draws treasure hunters to Wheatbelt in search of antique and vintage curios

What do an iridescent vase shaped like a dhufish, a pair of sunshine yellow Dr Martens boots and an antique bottle thought to be involved in a murder mystery all have in common?

They are some of the curious finds tucked inside the treasure trove that is Northam Secondhand.

Owners Paul and Kaz Morgan, along with their son Jack, have carefully collected thousands of relics of yesteryear to curate an intriguing store.

The Wheatbelt town of Northam, less than 90 minutes from Perth, is known for its hot air ballooning, suspension bridge and a rare bevy of white swans on the Avon River, but it’s the secondhand shop that is steadily building a cult following of day-trippers.

It’s how I find myself in the region mid-week with a friend, who has fallen in love with a set of vintage ceramic wall swallows posted on Northam Secondhand’s Instagram page.

We decide to make a day of it . . .

AN ENCHANTED WORLD

Stepping into Northam Secondhand is a little like taking a tumble through the enchanted wardrobe into Narnia itself. It’s as if it expands once you walk through the door, with shelves creating a labyrinth of collections within collections that weave through several big rooms covering 750sqm.

Here, an assembly of biscuit tins from the early 1900s. There, a stack of retro sci-fi magazines perfectly preserved in their plastic wrappers. I spy a pair of wooden salt and pepper shakers shaped like penguins, a piggy bank painted with a mischievous expression and an old set of model dentures, minus a few teeth.

Striking art deco glassware is arranged by colour to create a rainbow that unwinds through one room, while another area houses sporting trophies, model ships, war memorabilia, matchbox cars and travel tchotchkes.

Trying to count the number of items, from the biggest ornate wooden buffet to the tiniest hand-painted animal figurine, would be an impossible task.

But Paul has made it his mission to excavate as much as he can about their former lives.

“All the objects have a story,” he says. “Every day we learn something new because stuff is coming through the door and we love to research the back stories. We just immerse ourselves in the history of it all.”

In their past, Paul worked at the Western Australian Museum and Kaz was a visual merchandiser for department stores. (“She is an expert at window dressing and that’s what makes the store look amazing. It’s kind of a lost art,” Paul says.)

In 2018, they spontaneously bought a shed of more than 50,000 books on the outskirts of Northam. Within a week, Kaz had worked her magic and turned it into a bustling bookshop.

Next, they moved to a premises on the main street, and when the opportunity came up to buy the neighbouring secondhand furniture store four years ago, the family went all in.

FINDING THE TREASURES

They source their wares from “all over the place”, with Paul’s passion for building community unlocking access to private estates around regional WA that are time capsules from a bygone era.

He met a woman who worked in Goomalling in the 1960s and would buy a piece of Cornishware every payday, amassing the “amazing collection” that would eventually sell to him, and visited an “insane” replica Michelangelo house in Jennacubbine.

“Out in the country, it’s a bit different to working in the city — it’s a different kettle of fish,” Paul says. “If the community didn’t embrace us, we wouldn’t have lasted very long. Working with the locals has been really rewarding.

“The post-war immigration story is big in the Wheatbelt, and that’s led to some very interesting finds. We have a lot of suitcases with their original owners’ names on them; they came through Fremantle Port and made their way here.”

While most of the tales Paul uncovers are heartwarming, one discovery was more macabre.

“There’s a chemist bottle that is related to a murder mystery,” he says.

“Back in the days they used to report on all the court proceedings and there was this bizarre case involving the local chemist in Northam. His wife’s friend ended up dead inside a trunk in her house, and it was deemed a suicide — though how you can close the lid of a trunk if you’re dead is a bit unclear. The circumstances were quite suspicious.

“It goes to show the secrets a simple bottle can hold.”

FROM KIDS TO COLLECTORS

Northam Secondhand draws customers from far and wide, from seasoned collectors tracking down specific pieces — like a pair of Staffordshire mantle spaniels from 1860 — to families who have a shared appreciation for vintage wares and tourists fresh from a hot air balloon ride over the Avon Valley.

“What I love about what we offer is in the diversity,” Paul says.

“We might get a school kid who will come in once a week to buy a comic, or people buying vinyl records or books. We really enjoy finding good homes for these things.”

If you were to ask Paul and Kaz what their favourite thing to collect is, they would say “anything West Australian!”

“We love the old Mills and Wares tins from the biscuit factory in South Fremantle, and we both love Wembley Ware,” Paul says.

“The clay was sourced from Goomalling and then the artists made the ceramics in Subiaco. The most iconic piece is the big garish dhufish vase.

“It’s quite out-there and some people even find it offensive but we love it. It’s very unique to WA and there aren’t many that exist.”

THE FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL

Keeping this cave of wonders in business sometimes feels like an uphill battle for its owners.

Walking down Northam’s Fitzgerald Street, I notice many stores sit vacant and the town’s past as a thriving country hub seems a distant memory.

“Everyone goes up to visit Toodyay and York, whereas people see Northam as more of a service town,” Paul says.

“On the weekend it can be so quiet, you could kick a footy down the main street. We’ve really gone against the grain by continuing to open on Sundays.”

Paul believes Northam holds a lot of potential to become a tourism hotspot.

“It is a road less travelled, and the bakery menu probably hasn’t changed in 50 years but it’s comforting in that regard because there’s an authenticity to it,” he says.

“We were friends with (renowned architect) Brian Klopper who sadly passed away a few years back, and his big comment was that Northam has as much architectural diversity as Fremantle.

“It’s more personable than being in the city, too. You can wave to anyone on the main street and they are always up for a chat.”

Embracing social media has been critical for Northam Secondhand to reach a bigger audience and encourage visitors to the region.

And the strategy is working. Not only are interiors enthusiasts, like my friend, spotting curios on the shop’s feed and planning a day trip around their special purchase, but the team has sent antiques all around the world and even equipped movie sets.

As Jack is primed to one day take over the business, Paul and Kaz are optimistic that a new generation will continue to see value in quality secondhand items over mass-produced home decor.

“We really hope people will engage back with history,” Paul says.

“A lot of antique shops are shutting down and it can be a bit of a fight to stay open.

“There’s a lot of tradition out here. We understand we’re not going to get everyone, but it’s great to see younger people really embrace what we’re doing.”

fact file

+ Check out a selection of Northam Secondhand’s stock via northamsecondhand.com.au or @northamsecondhand

+ Northam is 96km from Perth, or roughly an 80-minute drive by car

+ Transwa also operates daily train and bus services to Northam