Purchase Tickets
This month marks the 70th anniversary of the opening of the Bellingrath Home to the public. Walter Bellingrath had died the previous August and his foundation agreement specified that his home would be opened to the public after his death.
Starting in 1949, Walter Bellingrath had begun preparing his house for the changes. He hired Hancock House, a Memphis decorating firm to come in to assist him. They converted two early 19th century French bookcases into the porcelain display cabinets in the second floor hall. They had previously been in the basement.
It was also on this floor that a shallow closet at the entrance to the Purple Guest Room was converted to a glass shelved display case for porcelain doll heads, previously stored ignobly in the basement.
Furniture was shipped to Memphis for refinishing and reupholstering. Several pairs of large vases were drilled and converted into lamps. The firm sold Mr. Bellingrath the oversized Aubusson carpet for the dining room, making it impassible to guests ever since.
Hancock House sold Mr. Bellingrath the Meissen plateau or centerpiece which is actually too wide for the dining table. The Mayflower Vase on the stand in this room was also purchased by the decorators.
Edward Carl recalled the transformation of the Butler’s Pantry. Doors and drawers were removed and he fitted the glass panels in place to display the china and silver he had once taken care of while he had been a butler in the home. He became a tour guide along with Luther Harris when the doors opened to the public but later retired from a career at Brookley Field.
The Home Opens
Advertising of the opening did not begin until early January of 1956. Newspapers around the state announced the “Opening to the Public of the Bellingrath Home and the Bessie Morse Bellingrath Collection – One of America’s Finest Showings of Antiques, Silver and China.”
This would seem to explain why the guest register shows no visitors on January 1 and only 28 visitors on the 2nd. However, as the month progressed the pages of visitors for each day stretched to two or three.
In August it was announced that the Gardens would be open for free in observance of Mr. Bellingrath’s birthday. The Home however would require a purchased ticket for admission.
Newspapers around the state also reported that by August, “visitors from every state in the union as well as many foreign countries have visited the Bellingrath Home since it was opened to the public in January.”
Over the past 70 years, the Home has changed little but the visitor experience has. The crowds which were once attracted strictly to “Antiques, Silver and China” have dwindled. The focus today is the remarkable story of Bessie and Walter Bellingrath and how their love for each other converted a rustic fishing camp into one of the country’s most unique garden estates. Once that story is told there is ample time to view those antiques.