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Auction of iconic cafe gives last chance to own history

Posted at 12:03 AM, Sep 11, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-11 01:03:38-04

Waco gave a final goodbye to a piece of local history.

Saturday, auctioneers sold off the contents of the Elite Café. The Waco Diner closed in February after 97 years in the city. In May the property was purchased by Chip and Joanna Gaines, who intend to re-open the space as a restaurant.

In a public auction, almost 300 items were up for sale. Items including everything from lighting fixtures to patio furniture.  Kitchen items like stoves and margarita mixers were available too.

Robert Clark, President of Clark Auction Company, says hundreds of people were interested in the Saturday sale. 300 people showed up in person over two days and over 100 registered online.

Many people attended the auction for the memorabilia. Organizers say former employees and customers of the restaurant tried to take some of the memories home.

“We had people come in here that pointed out their mother their grandfather in the pictures in 1920's 1930's pictures cousins, aunts, uncles. I saw some sad expressions on their face when they didn't get them bought and I saw some people happy to put it make in their family and show this is the heart of Waco."

All of the items sold in just a few hours. One of the larger items, the baby blue Cadillac in front of the Café sold for almost thirteen thousand dollars. While the auctioneers wouldn’t reveal who purchased the car, they did say don’t be surprised to see it again around town.