MILLBROOK ANTIQUES CENTER BRINGS HISTORY, CHARM AND FRIENDLY SERVICE TO THE HUDSON VALLEY
by Michele Llanes
The Village of Millbrook is affectionately known as the “Hampton’s of the Hudson Valley,” according to the Millbrook Antiques Center co-owners Tom McGeady and Anthony Gamazio. McGeady took ownership of the 40-year-old antique dealership in 2014 with Gamazio joining recently. Both owners originally called the Bronx their home.
McGeady is a retired Wall Street trader who began renting space in the store from the previous owners in 2010 to showcase and sell military memorabilia. Seeing that business was good, he purchased the Antiques Center in 2014. There are now 36 dealers of antiques and collectibles in the charming,18th century, 5300 square foot building that sits on the corner of Franklin Avenue and Route 44.
Sue Smith, of Pleasant Valley Vintage, has been dealing at the store for several years. “What sets the Millbrook Antiques Center apart is what I like to call the “Tom Factor,” she said. “Tom greets everyone that enters the store with a smile. He bends over backwards to help customers and dealers, never turning the ‘Closed’ sign until the last customer has left satisfied. His dedication is what makes the Millbrook Antiques Center great!”
Co-owner, Anthony Gramazio, recently moved into the antique center with his clock repair and restoration business. “Anthony is a good addition to the business,” stated McGeady, and just by the response of the community in the short time he has been operating, it’s a much-needed service. Gramazio repairs clocks and watches, a trade he “learned as a young man from his Grandfather.” Gramazio explained that he comes from a long line of relatives in the clock and watch trade, which includes his uncle who retired after 30 years of an award-winning career with Rolex. “He even makes house calls,” joked McGeady. Anthony confirmed that he often goes out to service large Grandfather clocks that many of the area residents value.
In 1977, according to the local newspaper, the Millbrook Round Table, Carleton Wicker and his wife converted the Millbrook Supply Co. into the Millbrook Antique Center. Even back then the article boasts servicing weekend visitors from Manhattan, Long Island and New Jersey. Today, shoppers also consist of ‘day trippers’, that come from all over the tri-state region. “Millbrook has been attracting customers from those areas for many years,” said McGeady, “that is the reputation of Millbrook, the Hampton’s of the Hudson Valley!”
