San Antonio had the Alamo, sure. But for decades, it also had Barney Smith. Specifically, it had Barney Smith’s Toilet Seat Art Museum, a garage-turned-wonderland that defied every logical expectation of what "fine art" should look like. Most people hear the words "toilet seat" and "museum" and think it’s a joke. It wasn't. It was the life’s work of a retired master plumber who decided that the porcelain throne’s wooden lid was the perfect canvas for the American experience.
Barney didn't just paint on these things. He layered them with history. He glued, carved, and decoupaged everything from volcanic ash from Mount St. Helens to a piece of the Berlin Wall onto these seats. It’s weird. It’s quirky. Honestly, it’s one of the most authentic displays of folk art ever assembled in the United States.
Why Barney Smith Started the Toilet Seat Art Museum
Barney Smith was a plumber by trade. That’s the first thing you have to understand. He spent his life around bathroom fixtures, so he didn't see a toilet seat as something gross or taboo. To him, it was just a sturdy piece of wood. The obsession started back in the 1970s when he was looking for a way to display some elk antlers he’d acquired. He realized a toilet seat lid was the perfect shape for a trophy mount.
He never sold a single seat. Not one. Even when collectors offered him thousands of dollars, he’d just shake his head. He’d tell folks that if he sold them, he wouldn't have a museum anymore. He just wanted people to come by his garage, sign his guestbook, and talk for a while. That’s the kind of guy he was. By the time he passed away in 2019 at the age of 98, he had created over 1,400 numbered pieces.
The Toilet Seat Art Museum wasn't just a collection of "potty humor." It was a massive, sprawling archive of 20th-century life. One seat might be covered in Boy Scout badges. Another might feature dental bridges and false teeth—Barney’s father was a dentist, after all. He even had a seat dedicated to the 1986 Challenger disaster. It was heavy, man. You’d walk into that garage and be surrounded by these hanging lids, floor to ceiling, each one telling a specific, tiny story about a moment in time or a person Barney met.
The Move to The Colony: Where is the Art Now?
For years, if you wanted to see the collection, you had to call Barney up. He lived in the Northwood Terrace neighborhood of San Antonio. You’d pull into his driveway, and he’d lead you to the garage. But as Barney got older, the family had to figure out what to do with the 1,400+ seats. You can’t exactly put a thousand toilet seats in a standard storage unit and call it a day.
In 2017, the collection was put up for sale with the requirement that it stay together. It found a new home at Truck Yard, a beer garden and "adult playground" in The Colony, Texas (near Dallas). They actually built a dedicated space for it.
What the new museum looks like
The vibe changed, obviously. Moving from a quiet suburban garage to a bustling bar and live music venue is a big shift. But the Truck Yard team did a solid job of preserving the chaos. They kept the seats numbered. They kept the handwritten notes. When you walk into the new Toilet Seat Art Museum location, it still feels like you’ve stepped into Barney’s brain. It’s free to enter, which Barney would have loved. He never charged a dime for admission.
Some purists were worried the art would lose its soul in a commercial setting. It’s a fair point. There’s something special about meeting the artist in his own driveway. But the alternative was the collection being split up at auction or rotting in a warehouse. Now, thousands of people see these seats every week while they’re out for a drink. It’s probably the most "Texas" outcome possible.
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Exploring the Themes of the Collection
Barney was a magpie. He collected everything. If you gave him a souvenir from your trip to Europe, it ended up on a seat. If he found a cool piece of scrap metal, it ended up on a seat.
One of the most famous pieces in the Toilet Seat Art Museum is Seat #724, which features a piece of the fuselage from the plane that crashed carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper. Then there's the "NASA Seat." Barney was obsessed with space exploration. He used patches, photos, and even bits of heat-shielding material.
- The "When Nature Calls" Seat: Covered in actual fossils.
- The "Graveyard" Seat: This one is a bit macabre, featuring items found in old cemeteries (with permission, usually).
- The International Section: Seats dedicated to countries Barney had heard about or people had visited, decorated with foreign coins and stamps.
It’s easy to dismiss this as kitsch. But if you look closer, the craftsmanship is actually pretty wild. Barney used a wood-burning tool to etch intricate patterns into the finished surfaces. He understood composition. He knew how to balance the visual weight of a seat covered in hundreds of tiny Pez dispensers.
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The Cultural Impact of Folk Art in the Toilet
Why does this matter? Why do we care about a museum full of decorated bathroom lids?
Because it’s "outsider art" in its purest form. Barney Smith didn't have an MFA. He didn't care about what the galleries in New York or London thought about his work. He created because he had an internal drive to document his world. In a world of digital NFTs and mass-produced IKEA prints, there is something deeply human about a man spending 50 years gluing his memories to toilet seats.
The Toilet Seat Art Museum represents a specific kind of American eccentricity that’s disappearing. It’s the same energy as the Cadillac Ranch or the Beer Can House in Houston. It’s the idea that you can take something mundane—something even considered "dirty"—and turn it into a monument.
Practical Tips for Visiting
If you’re planning a trip to see the Toilet Seat Art Museum at its new home in The Colony, there are a few things to keep in mind. First off, it’s located inside the Truck Yard. This means it’s a high-energy environment. If you want a quiet, contemplative experience, go on a weekday afternoon.
- Look for the "Plumber’s King" throne. There is a specific seat dedicated to Barney himself, often called the Plumber's King seat. It’s a great starting point.
- Bring a Sharpie. Sometimes they have a guestbook or a designated spot for visitors to leave a mark, honoring Barney’s tradition of tracking everyone who walked through his doors.
- Check the lighting. The new museum uses a lot of neon and bright lights. It’s great for photos, but sometimes the glare makes it hard to read Barney’s tiny, handwritten captions on the seats. Take your time.
- Ask the staff. Many of the folks working at Truck Yard were trained on the history of the collection. They might be able to point out the seat that contains a piece of the Hindenburg (yes, really).
The Legacy of the King of the Commode
Barney Smith lived a long, full life. He was a veteran, a plumber, and a family man. But to the world, he was the guy with the toilet seats. He embraced it. He used to joke that he was "sitting on a gold mine."
The Toilet Seat Art Museum reminds us that art doesn't have to be expensive to be valuable. It doesn't have to be in a building with marble floors and hushed whispers. Sometimes, the best art is in a garage in Texas, stuck to a piece of wood that most people try not to think about.
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Honestly, the next time you’re near Dallas, just go. You’ll walk in skeptical and walk out wondering why you haven't started a collection of your own. It’s a testament to the idea that everyone has a story to tell, even if they have to tell it on a toilet lid.
Actionable Next Steps
- Visit the Official Site: Check the Truck Yard Colony website for current hours, as the museum is tucked inside the venue.
- Document Your Own History: Barney’s "secret" was just saving small mementos. Start a shadow box or a scrapbook of the "useless" items you find meaningful.
- Support Local Folk Art: Every state has a "Barney Smith." Look for local roadside attractions or eccentric home-galleries in your area before they disappear or get moved to a bar.
- Study the Catalog: While there isn't a full digital archive of all 1,400+ seats yet, many fan sites and photography blogs have documented hundreds of them. Searching for "Barney Smith Seat Number [X]" can often reveal the story behind specific pieces.