AMERICAN Pickers alum Frank Fritz’s Illinois antique store will not be restocked with new items six months after his death.
Frank passed away on September 30, 2024 at 60 years old, two years after suffering a stroke that left him debilitated.
GC ImagesAmerican Pickers star Frank Fritz passed away in September 2024[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunHis store Frank Fritz Finds is located in Savanna, Illinois[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunThe store is currently in ‘limbo’[/caption]Frank’s beloved antique store, Frank Fritz Finds, in Savanna, Illinois is located in a side room of his good friend Jerry Gendreau’s bar Hawgdogs.
In an exclusive interview with The U.S. Sun, Jerry revealed he will no longer restock items for Frank Fritz Finds, as he considers the store to be “dead.”
“The store has been dead a long time,” Jerry told The U.S. Sun. “Obviously, it doesn’t have any stuff anymore. I’m not going out buying stuff.
“At one time, we had 120 antique dealers here. Antiques have fallen out of favor. What really is going on is, it’s a barn full of mistakes. It’s all the stuff nobody wanted. You gotta be current. The good stuff always sells and the junk hangs around.”
Jerry explained how before Frank suffered the stroke, he would bring antiques to the bar and had a “good wealth” of items.
As fans still stop by to check out the antique store, the doors will be open for customers to purchase the remaining items, though new merchandise won’t be added.
“Someone might come along to make it vibrant again, but that’s not me or my wife or any of us,” Jerry admitted. “We all fell out of favor of doing that. I’m going to wait and see what happens with the store.”
Jerry continued, “We’re more entertainment now than anything else. Frank loved music. This is more of a motorcycle town. That’s why Frank came here. I’m sure he would be pleased with something being done for him.”
Jerry revealed there are plans in the works to honor Frank in other ways other than maintaining the store.
STORE PHOTOS
In exclusive photos obtained by The U.S. Sun, Frank’s store appears emptier than photos taken in September 2024.
A rack of shirts that was once full now contains mostly empty hangers.
Cobwebs and dust have collected on antiques that haven’t been touched in years.
Random metal and wood scraps are thrown in the corner of the store.
The final new items to appear in the store are a skeleton in a white dress and a horse statue.
Fans who traveled to visit the store have expressed their frustration over the store conditions and merchandise in recent months.
One Google review read, “If you’re going to this store to try to find something cool, choose another place. The antique section is small and is very underwhelming.”
Another commented, “Had Frank’s health been better I’m sure he would’ve done more with the store. RIP buddy.”
Matt Symons for The U.S. SunMetal and wood scraps seen in the abandoned store[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunA once full rack of shirts is now occupied by hangers[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunOne of the final new antiques includes a skeleton in a white dress[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunAnother new antique is a horse statue[/caption]STORE REVAMP
After Frank’s death, Jerry previously had plans to revamp the store in honor of his friend.
Jerry told The U.S. Sun in October 2024, “We have been an antique store for 35 years. We’ll probably continue to be that.
“We may display motorcycles and choppers that represent Frank.
“Right now it’s set up as an 1880s general store. Maybe they’ll be bikes on a rack all the way down the center.
“We’re trying to contemplate what other people want me to do.”
END OF AN ERA
Frank’s store limbo comes after his co-star Mike Wolfe closed down his Nashville, Tennessee store Antique Archaeology on Sunday, April 27.
Mike, 60, explained of his decision to close the store after 15 years in business, “For me, that’s family. It’s slowing down a little, staying rooted, and focusing on the new projects that are pulling at my soul. I’m not disappearing — not even close.”
Mike’s Le Claire, Iowa store, which is mainly featured on American Pickers, will remain open.
FRANK’S CONSERVATORSHIP
Frank wasn’t as involved in the store after he suffered a stroke in July 2022.
Frank’s friends filed an emergency appointment of a temporary guardian and conservator for the star on August 18, 2022, claiming his “decision-making capacity” was “so impaired.”
The conservatorship papers obtained by The U.S. Sun revealed plans for the store in the years after the stroke.
The Initial Plan filed by conservator MidWestOne Bank read, “Mr. Fritz is a well-known collector and has numerous outbuildings full of valuable collections.
“The conservator has not yet inventoried those items but plans to leave them largely as they are now, with the exception of stocking Mr. Fritz’s antique store in Savanna, IL as needed.
“Conservator is hopeful [Frank] will be able to participate in selection and pricing of items as he did previously.”
HEALTH STRUGGLES
The stroke left Frank wheelchair-bound and in a rehabilitation center.
A source previously told The U.S. Sun in August 2023, “He can walk, but he’s always going to need the wheelchair because he can’t walk long distances.
“Basically, you lose motion. He lost motion. A stroke can affect your left or your right side, it affected his right side.”
Jerry previously gave insight into Frank’s health struggles in his final days.
He said, “He felt really, really bad.
“You would go to see him in the nursing home and one-half of his body was completely done. He would lift his arm up and it would just drop.
“That’s got to be tough to be totally bedridden.”
Jerry added, “I’ve seen this when people get tired, they get tired. I think if you don’t have the will to live, you won’t.
“I think Frank could’ve lived a lot longer if the will to live would’ve been there.”
Frank Fritz's Conservatorship
Frank Fritz was placed under a conservatorship in August 2022, just weeks after he suffered a stroke.
Frank’s conservator was MidWestOne Bank and was in charge of his finances The bank agreed to invest Frank’s money and antique collections to generate income The guardian was his good friend Chris Davis Chris was responsible for helping Frank manage his Crohn’s disease treatment, go to physical therapy, grocery shop, cook and more day-to-day tasks The conservatorship also agreed to help replenish Frank’s Iowa antique store, Frank Fritz Finds A wheel-chair ramp and more were installed in his Iowa home under the conservatorship Frank was under the conservatorship until his death in September 2024BATTLE AFTER DEATH
Jerry previously told The U.S. Sun how loved ones planned to honor the star’s final wish by having a memorial in the Spring of 2025.
He said, “This was his will, he wanted to come on the back of a motorcycle or a sidecar with his ashes in an urn with a big ride and go back to the Quad Cities.”
But Frank’s final ride through the Quad Cities has been delayed because of a battle over his fortune.
The U.S. Sun previously reported an Iowa judge approved Frank’s “will prior to death.”
But his dad, Bill, is fighting for his late son’s entire estate.
Bill previously told The U.S. Sun of the court battle, “It is a fake will. He did not have a will. He did not sign it.
“I am his only loved one. I am his only survivor. None of them are related to him. I am the only relation he has.
“All the others are trying to get money. They are nothing but people who worked for him.”
One of Frank’s friends pushed back to The U.S. Sun, claiming, “His father had very little to do with Frank. He only came to see Frank once when he suffered the stroke.”
The insider maintained that the will is “valid.”
The source told The U.S. Sun, “His close motorcycle family planned a motorcycle run that includes riding Frank’s ashes to Savanna, Illinois where his longtime friend Jerry runs his antique store.
“They planned to have live music, possibly blocking off streets.”
“His friends were in the process of planning the memorial when his dad challenged the will.”
The insider claimed Frank is the one who wanted a “grand celebration with his friends” and that Bill “did not know what his son wanted.”
Matt Symons for The U.S. SunThe store will no longer be restocked, but customers could purchase the remaining items[/caption] Matt Symons for The U.S. SunThe store has a mix of large and small antiques[/caption] Coleman-RaynerFrank’s father and close friends are currently battling over his will[/caption] Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( American Pickers alum Frank Fritz’s shop is ‘dead’ & friend will ‘stop restocking antiques’ 6 months after star’s death )
Also on site :