Bellingrath Gardens and Home at Theodore, Ala., is celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Bellingrath Home.
The recent celebration included a tour of the Bellingrath Home and a reception on the dining porch overlooking Fowl River.
“The Bellingrath Home is an incredible treasure to the Gardens,” said Executive Director Dr. Bill Barrick. “Everyone at Bellingrath is enjoying celebrating this monumental milestone in our history and preserving the legacy Mr. and Mrs. Bellingrath left behind.”
Walter Bellingrath, Mobile’s first Coca-Cola bottler, always wanted guests to sign in on old hotel-like registers. In the 1936 register, an entry was written by Mr. Bellingrath: “Our first meal in our new home on the Glorious Fourth of July, 1936.” The Home was completed in 1936 and features hand-made brick salvaged from the 1852 birthplace of Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont and ironwork from the former Southern Hotel in Mobile.
Founded by Walter and Bessie Bellingrath in 1932, Bellingrath Gardens and Home is one of the top public gardens in the United States. Known for its southern charm and unsurpassed beauty, the gardens have long been a treasure to the Mobile community and a favorite of tourists and garden-lovers worldwide.
Bellingrath Gardens is located 20 miles southwest of Mobile, Alabama. From I-10, take exit 15A onto Highway 90. Turn south on Bellingrath Road and follow the signs.
For additional information, please contact Crystal Wall at 251 973-2217.