The thrill of discovering that you, too, might have a priceless family heirloom tucked away in a closet or a valuable item picked up at an estate sale is what makes Antiques Roadshow so compelling.
So, when the producers of Antiques Roadshow named St. Louis as one of the five stops on their 2025 roadshow tour, we were ready. Nearly 20,000 local sweepstakes entries were received online for free passes to attend the event, and 2,000 lucky residents each got a pair of tickets that enabled them to get up to two items appraised. St. Louis had the highest number of sweepstakes entrants of all locations for its 30th season.
The atmosphere was electric at the May 13 event, with more than 3,100 fans of the show flocking to the historic Grant’s Farm location.
The event (last held in St. Louis in 2017) put a spotlight on the St. Louis community and demonstrated the importance of public media as a collective space for connection, inspiring local stories, and education that people trust.
The St. Louis episodes will air on Nine PBS in early 2026. Keep an eye out for a sneak peek screening event at Nine PBS before the official release of Antiques Roadshow, Season 30.
Roadshow producers and appraisers cited boxer shorts belonging to President John F. Kennedy and a Civil War-era sock with gunshots through it as some of the amazing finds, but our own staff had conversations with some enthusiastic collectors and spectators as well.
“Antiques Roadshow was awesome! It was cool to see so many different items that people deemed valuable in some way. Whether it was a personal item that remains in the family or an item that people just wanted monetary value for, people have lots of weird stuff! I love the human urge to collect things and hold items close to our hearts,” says Nine PBS Associate Producer Olivia Moses.
Roya Bromell, Nine PBS senior director of planned giving, says two Legacy Nine PBS members were filmed and that people were “simply delighted to be there. I know a couple of people who didn’t bring anything; they just wanted to personally see Antiques Roadshow in action.”
A perennial Emmy® Award-nominee, Antiques Roadshow is one of PBS's most-watched ongoing series. Antiques Roadshow typically airs Monday nights on Nine PBS with two back-to-back episodes beginning at 8 pm, weekdays at noon, and it’s streaming anytime on the PBS app.
Nine PBS hosted several media outlets at the event, including Fox 2, KMOV, KSDK, St. Louis Magazine, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Spectrum News, and even Country Living.
KTVI
Fox 2 St. Louis’s Tim Ezell had some fun with Antiques Roadshow’s auctioneer and pop culture expert, Travis Landry, with appraisals of his Saved by the Bell TV series board game, a newish Rubik’s Cube, and the TP Mister in its original packaging. All totaled? $50.
St. Louis Magazine
Read Design Editor-in-Chief Veronica Theodoro’s story on some of the amazing finds at Grant’s Farm, including copper tubs and a photo taken in 1941 at Sportsman’s Park between two Negro League teams.
St. Louis Magazine
Julie Pennell spoke with appraisers and someone who traveled from Indianapolis for a chance to have his item appraised: a pair of boxer shorts belonging to President John F. Kennedy.
St. Louis Magazine
S.C. Truckey gives a first-person account of what it was like to be at Grant’s Farm awaiting appraisal of her West-German-made address book and an Alpaca Mexico necklace, including a stop at the Feedback Booth.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (subscription required)
Aisha Sultan’s story of her family’s possession of “mythical” Dunlap pliers, owned by Charles Lindbergh, which she was able to bring as a member of the press covering the event.
KSDK
Diamond Palmer interviewed Marsha Bemko, executive producer of Antiques Roadshow, and Amy Shaw, Nine PBS president and CEO.
