Ben Gary credits his 35 years of success to honesty. “Keep it straight.Tell the truth.” Ben and his son, James, work well together in getting the items ready. (Brian G. Miller • Staff)

Most Saturdays and many Monday nights are work days for the people at Gary's Auction Barn in Spring Hill. And though the crew there looks like they're just having a good time during an auction, there's a little more work that goes into this production - not that they're not having a good time. To be successful in most businesses you have to enjoy what you do, and after 35 years it would seem that Ben Gary still enjoys what he does. He enjoys it so much that he's even influenced his family to join him in this business.

Most Saturdays and many Monday nights are work days for the people at Gary's Auction Barn in Spring Hill. And though the crew there looks like they're just having a good time during an auction, there's a little more work that goes into this production - not that they're not having a good time.

To be successful in most businesses you have to enjoy what you do, and after 35 years it would seem that Ben Gary still enjoys what he does. He enjoys it so much that he's even influenced his family to join him in this business. Actually, it didn't take much. Gary's son, James, liked the business so much that he came to auctions and helped wherever he could when he was just a child. James remembers when his grandfather, at age 89, would help out, but around 8 p.m. would go home to put young James to bed. Not only is James a vital part of the business, so is daughter Julie and James' wife, Pam, who both have real estate licenses. Then there's grandson Joe Spencer Gary, James' son, who at only 3 has already picked up a microphone ready to get those bids.

The auction business came about by encouragement from Ben Gary's wife, Burnetta, who now keeps the books and writes the checks. Gary had been farming but found the industry not producing as much as needed and started looking around for something else to do. He was already working on occasion with other auctions and thought, with encouragement from Burnetta, that he could do this.

After two weeks of training in Illinois, he was ready to begin. "Back then," Ben Gary said, "all you had to do was go down to the courthouse and pay for your license. Now you have to go to school, then apprentice for two years before taking a test. Then you have to go to a school every year."

Shortly after he got his license, Gary joined the Tennessee Auctioneer Association. Gary was encouraged by Newt Billings, who he was also working for. "I was just starting out and I'd do anything to get the business," Ben Gary said. The TAA offers classes each year, and Gary still attends. "We just had one a few weeks ago that was real good. The instructor showed us how to tell counterfeit." In 1994, Gary was inducted into the TAA Hall of Fame for outstanding service and his contributions to auctions. This award has been given to very few over the years.

His first auction barn was "just down the road" from where he is now. After about a year and a half, he moved to the barn where he is now - although the barn has been enlarged to hold about 200 people.

Both Ben's and James' personalities help make the auction interesting. The friendly banter between them and the other workers keeps things lively. Plus, many of their bidders are every-week customers who know each other and bid freely against each other, though Gary feels that a stranger in the crowd can also liven up the auction. "Friends won't bid against friends," Ben Gary said. There's even a "loafers" corner for those more interested in talking than watching the auction. And to bid in an auction you really should pay close attention to the bidding and what the auctioneer says. But at a Gary auction, "Don't wait two hours later; go ahead and say, 'Wait, I've made a mistake.'"

Gary can regale listeners with stories from the auction barn for hours. "One time a man sold a Cadillac. At that time we advertised cash ... the lady that bought it brought all $5 and $10 bills for a $5,000 car. My wife, Burnetta, didn't know what to do with the money until the sale was over so she just sat on it.

"Another time a customer bought $600-plus worth of candy machines. When she came up to pay she had a Wal-Mart sack ... full of $1 bills. Burnetta had to count out all that while people were in line behind that lady waiting to pay."

There have also been some interesting items for sale. A few years ago, Gary did a charity sale for Reba McEntire. He also does specialty sales like the upcoming clock sale that will be held on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 10 and 11 - an estate sale with around 500 clocks. Gary estimates it will be one of the "big" ones. "Similar to the McCoy sale we had," comments James Gary, further stating that people from as far away as Canada came to that particular sale. With more than 2,000 pieces of McCoy pottery under one roof, even the writers of the price guide were in attendance to update their prices.

Gary credits his 35 years of success to honesty. "Keep it straight. Tell the truth." The father-and-son team works well together, with James getting the items ready, having them on hand, waiting so there's no time-lapse between items. James estimated that his father sold an average of 140 items in an hour recently in a Monday night sale. And that is not skimping on prices either.

"We, the family, have met a lot of nice people; then, we've met a few dogs too, [but] not many. We're very lucky we've made lots of friends," Ben Gary said.

"These things are not as easy to run as it looks like. There's been over 25 auction barns that have started and closed in this county," James Gary said. "We've sold everything from loads of paper towels to glassware, entertainers' possessions to Hummel figurines." According to the Garys, it takes a couple of days to get an estate ready to sell, although some will take longer. Paperwork such as contracts and escrows is another time-consumer which usually ends up with James. Auctioneers can't know everything, but they have to know as much as they can. Trends also change, and Roseville is one of the hottest selling items now.

Gary Realty and Auction is located at 4959 Columbia Pike in Spring Hill. For more information, call (615) 302-2680.