THE BELLINGRATH HOME 
Until 1934, Walter and Bessie Bellingrath had been residents of Mobile where they maintained a beautiful home and garden at 60 South Ann Street.   With the decision to have their weekend property open year round, it was realized that it would take a great deal more supervision.  The couple decided to establish residency at their now famous Gardens, which were beginning to receive national recognition.

The 15-room Home was built in 1935 and designed by prominent Mobile architect, George B. Rogers, and encompasses 10,500 square feet.  The kitchen building was demolished for the site, with the lodge remaining as a guest house.  The exterior of the Home features hand-made brick salvaged in Mobile from the 1852 birthplace of Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont.  Ironwork was obtained from the recently demolished Southern Hotel, also in Mobile.  The result was dubbed “English Renaissance” by Rogers.

Flagstone terraces, a slate roof and figural copper downspouts join with a central courtyard, balconies and covered galleries to give the Home a Gulf Coast flair.  The architect wanted the visitor to think of the house as a home, not a mansion, and it is situated to give the impression of a much more modest residence.  He also wanted the Home to reflect the architectural heritage of the region. 

The Bellingrath Home appears as it did in the Bellingraths’ era.  Enjoy seeing the “ultra modern” bathrooms of 1935, the kitchen with its original appliances, German silver countertops and sinks and the Butler’s Pantry, overflowing with Mrs. Bellingrath’s collection of silver, crystal and china.

The Home contains numerous treasures, including the Chippendale dining table and chairs once owned by Sir Thomas Lipton of the Lipton Tea Company.  The second floor of the Home contains a porcelain gallery, guest bedrooms and Mr. and Mrs. Bellingrath’s bedrooms.  The Home contains three dining rooms and overlooks Fowl River. 

The Home was the most modern of its kind in 1935, but Alabama Power had not brought electricity to this remote area of Mobile County and the Bellingrath’s depended on a large Delco generating plant for electricity until 1940.

The Bellingrath Home is the only Alabama property to be featured on the popular America’s Castles series on A&E.  Tours of the Bellingrath Home begin on the hour and half hour beginning at 9am with the last tour at 4 p.m.  During Magic Christmas in Lights, tours end at 8pm.

The adjoining guest house and garage was completed in 1939, and has housed a collection of Boehm Porcelain since 1967.  This fine American porcelain collection was a gift to the Bellingrath-Morse Foundation by the Delchamps family of Mobile, long associated with the Bellingrath family.  This building also serves as a visitors lounge and adjoins the family chapel.

The Bessie Morse Bellingrath Collection

The Bellingrath Home opened to the public in January 1956 and remains one of the few homes featuring all of its original furnishings.  As much as she loved the blooms of azaleas, camellias and roses, Mrs. Bellingrath loved collecting fine antiques.  For more than 35 years, Mrs. Bellingrath collected fine antiques, and her husband wanted that collection preserved for future generations to enjoy. 

Antique dealers from New York to New Orleans provided Bessie Bellingrath with the finest of European porcelains, French and Georgian silver and American furniture.  The furniture includes American and some English examples from the first half of the 19th century.

Both floors of the Home seemingly overflow with European and English porcelains dating from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries.  The collection is a varied one and stretches from the finest German Meissen to Royal Doulton’s colorful figures of the 1930s.

The Butler’s Pantry displays nine sets of china and eight sets of elegant service plates as well as English, French and American silver.  A separate pantry houses Mrs. Bellingrath’s collection of crystal, flatware and glassware.  The adjoining Bottle Room contains a display ranging from a 1903 Coca-Cola bottle to colorful Bohemian decanters.