Iconic cowboy has been sold, but more Yesterday’s memorabilia still up for bids
Yesterday’s has closed and the iconic carving of a cowboy in a bathtub has been sold.
But those looking for a piece of the popular restaurant and tavern that had been a staple in Columbia’s Five Points area for 43 years, before suddenly closing in April, still have a chance to buy memorabilia being auctioned.
The bidding began Saturday in the online event run by Wooten & Wooten Auctioneers. While many notable items that lined the walls or housed customers at Yesterday’s are still available, the cowboy quickly sold.
A bidder paid $3,600 for the cowboy in the bathtub, carved out of live oak, that adorned Yesterday’s unique flatiron building since 1989. The cowboy had never left the the building on Devine Street until it was taken to the auction.
Information on the buyer, or what they intend to do with the cowboy, was not available.
Bidding started at $1,500 and there were seven bids made before the cowboy was sold, according to liveauctioneers.com. The auction house estimated the sculpture from Yesterday’s would fetch $3,000-5,000.
“Out of that entire collection, the cowboy in the bathtub is the icon,” Jeremy Wooten previously told The State.
It was commissioned in 1989 and is carved mostly from a single chunk of wood from a Southern live oak tree downed in Hurricane Hugo in 1989, The State reported. Only the legs were added to the original piece of tree to complete the sculpture, according to liveauctioneers.com.
“It’s Americana, man, Americana,” said Wooten, whose usual stock in trade is fine arts and antiques sold around the world.
There were five bids on an image of the cowboy in the tub painted on a piece of redwood, which sold for $950, according to liveauctioneers.com. Among the many other items sold in the auction includes the last call bell ($450), sections of pine bar ($500 apiece), and a stain glass window emblazoned with the name “Yesterday’s ($800).”
Although the cowboy in the tub is gone, other items from Yesterday’s are still up for auction.
There is an arts & crafts period bar made of oak which actually predates Yesterday’s 1977 debut, and was used in the building when it was a soda fountain and drug store. It still has the stickers and decals that had been added to it over the years, according to the auction house, which is asking $1,000 for the bar.
Also priced at $1,000 is the original renaissance revival bar from Yesterday’s. It was bought by the former owners in Atlanta, Georgia, and has turned marble columns on each side with Corinthian capitals.
Two antique stoneware jugs, antique wheat sickles from the 19th century, 150 gallon fish tanks, hand-decoupaged tables featuring old photos from Life Magazine, The State newspaper and the old Columbia Record, neon signs, and original bar taps are still up for auction.
When Yesterday’s co-owner Scottie McRae shared the news about the restaurant and bar closing permanently, he said “43 years is a hell of a run.”
“It is with heavy but grateful hearts that we’ve decided to hang it up for good,” the post read. “We want to extend love and thanks to all of you who came along for the ride. This community made work feel like home for us (long before that was a thing). And nothing brought us more joy than making y’all comfortable. Take care of yourselves and be good to one another.”
Earlier in the year, the owners, including Darrell Barnes and Duncan MacRae, sold the distinct triangular building that houses Yesterday’s.
The new owner of the building is Dominic Como, a New Jersey native who co-founded Village Idiot Pizza and now owns the Aqua Seal Roofing Company in Cayce. He said he plans to preserve and renovate the building, but he doesn’t know yet what it will become.
The restaurant was known for starting the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Five Points and has served famous customers such as actor James Caan, author Pat Conroy and musician Darius Rucker, according to The State.
Staff writer Jeff Wilkinson contributed to this report.
This story was originally published July 26, 2020 at 1:59 PM.
