Gold Rush — the legendary Elliston Place dive bar in which countless locals have bathed in cigarette smoke while quaffing beer — has closed.
Sources have told the Scene, and a number of social media posts appear to confirm, that employees worked their final shift Sunday night. It is unclear if the closing is permanent, as officials who own the business could not be reached for comment.
A sign on the door of the bar reads as follows: “We are sorry but the Gold Rush is closed until further notice. We will miss you but we have done everything we can do. It’s sad. -The Gold Rush.”
Of note, the space from which Gold Rush and two other tenants operate is listed for sale for an undisclosed asking price. The buildings have addresses of 2201 and 2209 Elliston Place, with other tenants including clothing retailer Smack and Japanese restaurant Samurai Sushi.
The property is a part of what many refer to as the Rock Block, a term derived from its live music roots (nearby are venues Exit/In and The End). Gold Rush opened in 1974 and is known for its bean roll, quirky spaces and dark lighting. It is considered by many Nashvillians one of the city’s most beloved old-school watering holes. (Read more here from late Scene editor Jim Ridley.)
The current ownership of the property dates to October 1971, when two individuals acquired it for $75,000, according to Metro records. In January 2017, Metro appraised the land and buildings for about $1.6 million.
The owner of the property, who is asking to go unnamed, has enlisted Axson West, principal at Nashville-based Southeast Venture, to handle the marketing and sale of the buildings.
“The property owner was getting unsolicited offers and decided to list the property for sale and entertain offers,” West emailed Scene sister publication the Nashville Post in October. “All current leases go with the property and will be respected under new ownership if the property sells.”
Clad in brick and stone and sitting on 0.33 acres — there is some surface parking in the back — the buildings were constructed prior to World War II (seemingly in the 1920s, according to Metro records) when commercial structures tended to be smallish and oriented at the sidewalk in what is an urban form and function. Since the 1950s, Nashville has lost many of such buildings.
Somewhat relatedly, the building that fronts Elliston and houses New York Pizza and Obie’s Pizza has a different ownership, with that entity also owning the small structure positioned behind and accommodating live music venue The End.
As it happens, another locally beloved longtime neighborhood dive announced its upcoming closing just this month — Edgefield Sports Bar & Grill.
