Bar W Field: The Ultimate Guide to Round Top's Biggest Outdoor Treasure Hunt

If you've ever driven Highway 237 through Warrenton during show weeks, you've seen it — acres of vendors stretching across open Texas fields, pickup trucks backed up to booths, and treasure hunters walking the rows with armfuls of finds. That's Bar W Field, the largest outdoor shopping venue at the Round Top Antique Show.

Here's everything you need to know before you go.

What Is Bar W Field?

Bar W Field is a sprawling, open-air antique and vintage market in Warrenton, Texas, four miles south of Round Top on Highway 237. During the spring, fall, and winter antique shows, hundreds of vendors set up across acres of open field with everything from vintage advertising signs and cast iron to antique stoneware, Western wear, mid-century furniture, vintage denim, quilts, fine china, stained glass, and architectural salvage.

This isn't a curated, polished antique mall. Bar W is raw, authentic, and full of surprises. It's where the serious diggers come — the people who don't mind walking a few miles in the sun to find something nobody else has spotted yet.

When Is It Open?

Bar W is one of the first Warrenton venues to open each season:

Spring 2026: March 10 – March 28
Fall 2026: Early October (dates TBA)

The show runs approximately three weeks during each season. Bar W typically opens a full week before the Round Top venues further north on 237, making it an early-bird favorite.

What Will You Find?

The variety at Bar W is staggering. Here's what to expect:

Antique Advertising & Signs

This is Bar W's bread and butter. You'll find porcelain gas station signs (Sinclair, Texaco, Mobil), vintage Coca-Cola, neon signs, thermometers, and advertising pieces from every era. Vendors come from the Midwest specifically to sell regional advertising that you won't find anywhere else in Texas. Prices range from $15 for a vintage Schlitz sign to $9,500 for a rare local cafe sign.

Primitives & Rustic Finds

Cast iron, stoneware, farm tools, wooden crates, old outboard engines, weathervanes, and workbenches. One booth had a Portland Cement display piece, another had antique scales and fishing lures. This is the kind of stuff that gives a home real character.

Vintage Fashion & Western Wear

Cowboy boots, Levi's denim jackets (original vintage — expect $100+ for the good ones), Western shirts, cowboy hats, leather goods, and vintage snake skin pieces. Denim is hot right now, and the vendors know it. Set designers from Hollywood actually shop the fields here.

Jewelry & Accessories

Estate jewelry, cameos, vintage Lucite handbags (Majestic Metal Specialties — the kind you'd see in Palm Beach), Eisenberg fashion jewelry, cardigan clips from the 1950s, vintage perfume bottles, and gold-filled lockets. One vendor had a massive collection of sweater accessories that was like stepping into a 1950s department store.

Home & Tabletop

Pressed glass pitchers from the Victorian era (EAPG — Early American Pattern Glass, mass-produced 1850–1914), milk glass, Waterford Crystal, silver plate trays, depression glass, and china sets including Wedgwood Bone China. One shopper found a Waterford Crystal Glen Car bowl for $15 that retailed for $98.

Quilts & Textiles

American patchwork quilts, yo-yo quilts made from 3D fabric rosettes, vintage linens, embroidered pillowcases, lace-edged dresser scarves, and even a leather quilt. These sell fast — if you see one you love, don't walk away.

Furniture

Farmhouse tables, mercantile counters (one painted sunny yellow — $725), iron and brass beds, East Lake dressers, Victorian buffets, and mid-century chairs. One vendor from Wisconsin had repurposed workshop cabinets with antique wavy glass panels — it sold immediately.

Stained Glass

Bar W has one of the largest stained glass collections in the Round Top area. Panels from churches and private homes, perfect for adding a historic touch to new construction or as decorative wall hangings.

The Unexpected

A piece of taxidermy from the Yellowstone 1883 TV series filmed in Fort Worth. A monument you'd expect to find at a park, made by Texas A&M students ($5,900). A General Electric refrigerator — the very first model — with cabriole legs and the compressor on top ($475). You never know what you'll find at Bar W.

Real Deals From the Field

Here's what actual shoppers found and paid at recent shows:

Waterford Crystal bowl — $15 (retails $98)
Coin silver cake server — $10
Vintage Snap-On plastic sign — $40
Willie Wiredhand electric thermometer — $10
Continental thermometer — $10
Vintage Levi's denim jacket — $100
East Lake style dresser, half price — $225
Mid-century chairs — $45 each
Reed seeds advertising sign — $45

The deals are real. You just have to look.

Tips for Shopping Bar W

Bargain freely. Sticker prices are starting points. Most vendors expect offers and are happy to negotiate. One shopper in the transcripts regularly offered 15–20% below sticker and closed deals. Cash gives you the best leverage.

Come early. The best finds go fast, especially on the first weekend of each show. Bar W opens early in the season — take advantage of it.

Wear comfortable shoes. You're walking acres of open field on grass, gravel, and dirt. This is not a place for sandals.

Bring your truck. If you find furniture or large signs, you'll want to be able to load up on the spot. Vendors will help you carry.

Plan for weather. October shows can still hit 90 degrees. Spring can be unpredictable. Bring sunscreen, a hat, and water.

Bring cash, but Venmo works. Most vendors take cash and Venmo. Some take credit cards. Cash is still the best bargaining tool.

Don't miss the food. Bar W is known for crispy Diet Coke and spiral potatoes. You'll need fuel for all that walking.

The People

What makes Bar W special isn't just the stuff — it's the vendors. Dealers travel from Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Florida to sell here. Some have been coming for years. They'll tell you the story behind every piece, where they found it, and what makes it special. It's a community as much as a marketplace.

One vendor comes down from Minnesota every spring, fall, and winter with a truck full of Midwest advertising signs. Another from Iowa brings farm signs and agricultural collectibles you'd never find in Texas. A Florida dealer brings Palm Beach-era fashion accessories. The cross-pollination of regional finds is what makes Bar W unlike any other venue at Round Top.

Getting There

Bar W Field 4001 Highway 237 South, Warrenton, TX 78954 Phone: (979) 885-8762

Located 4 miles south of Round Top on Highway 237, in the heart of the Warrenton antique corridor. Between Austin and Houston in central Texas.

Parking: Free
Admission: Free
Restrooms: Available
Pets: Leashed dogs welcome
Food: On-site (spiral potatoes, drinks, snacks)

The Bottom Line

Bar W Field is the real deal. It's not polished, it's not air-conditioned, and you're going to get some sun. But if you're the kind of person who gets a rush from finding a $15 Waterford Crystal bowl or a vintage Levi's jacket that a Hollywood costume designer would kill for, this is your place.

As one regular put it: "It's like a big treasure hunt — a super gigantic treasure hunt."

Come dig.

Plan your visit with Round Top Finder — find Bar W on the interactive map, save your parking spot, and discover what's nearby.

More Round Top Guides

Planning Your Trip:

Browse all venues on the interactive map or download the Round Top Finder app to plan your trip.