By Tom McGehee, Museum Director of the Bellingrath Home In 1903, Walter Bellingrath and his brother, William, ventured into an exciting new enterprise when they purchased franchise rights to sell Coca-Cola in Alabama. The brothers bought the Montgomery franchise for…

By Tom McGehee, Museum Director of the Bellingrath Home One of the more popular rooms in the Bellingrath Home is the colorful bathroom adjoining the first guest room. Many express surprise when told it is original to the 1936 Home.…

By Dr. Bill Barrick, Executive Director In honor of National Estuaries Week (Sept. 17-24), I wanted to take the opportunity to discuss the Fowl River estuary, an important part of the Gardens from its earliest days as a fishing camp…

By Tom McGehee, Museum Director of the Bellingrath Home After Walter and Bessie Bellingrath's 1906 marriage, city directories show that they resided in a house at 108 St. Anthony Street. No photographs have been located of that house, but city…

  By Sally Pearsall Ericson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations In the 1960s and 70s, artist Louise Estes was inspired by the beauty she found at Bellingrath Gardens and Home, where she meticulously recreated her favorite specimens of camellias, roses and other…

By Tom McGehee, Museum Director of the Bellingrath Home Although Walter and Bessie Bellingrath had no children of their own, they were richly blessed to be an important part of the lives of their many nieces and nephews. In 1976,…

By Dr. Bill Barrick, Executive Director One of the most wonderful water features in the Gardens is the majestic, three-tiered cast iron fountain in the center of the Rose Garden. Many of our guests may be surprised to learn that it…

By Tom McGehee, Museum Director of the Bellingrath Home Walter D. Bellingrath is remembered as Mobile's first Coca-Cola Bottler and the founder of Bellingrath Gardens and Home. But he was also well known for his civic leadership in Mobile for…