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WILSON PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK AVAILABLE You may purchase a copy of the soft-cover book Mobile: Photographs from the William E. Wilson Collection by Marilyn Culpepper for HMPS and published by Arcadia Press in 2001 as part of its Images of America series. To order, send check or money order in the amount of $24.42 ($19.95+$1.96 tax+$2.61 S&H) to Oakleigh Gift Shop, 300 Oakleigh Place, Mobile, AL 36604 OR stop by the Oakleigh Gift Shop located on the first floor of the Oakleigh House Museum to buy a copy. The Gift Shop is open daily, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you wish the book personalized, please specify for whom the book is intended and what the inscription should say.
HMPS is producing a book on Mobile County History to be released next Spring. If you are interested in having the history of your business, organization or attraction included, please call 251.432.6161 or email hmps@bellsouth.net for information. |
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Friends of Catholic Cemetery
Restoration of Catholic Cemetery is the goal of a volunteer group that has formed under the name “Friends of Catholic Cemetery,” a steering committee of 15 volunteers committed to the cause.
Perilla Wilson, chairman of the steering committee that Mrs. Wilson told the gathering that the cemetery is rapidly deteriorating and needs immediate attention. Also needed are complete records of burial. Former Archdiocesan Director of Administration Bill Woolfarth, has retired and is now working part-time as Catholic Cemetery administrator. Restoration of this wonderful historic property will be his focus, Woolfarth said while conditions at the cemetery are stabilized, help is needed to restore it to former glory.
“We actually don’t even know the names of everyone who is buried there,” said Woolfarth. He and Mrs. Wilson hope that more people will join in efforts to update records. Members of the Mobile Genealogical Society are already undertaking this task but there is a need for more volunteers to do various things. Marilyn Culpepper, executive director of Historic Mobile Preservation Society and a member of the steering committee, said her organization will assist in publicizing FOCC and help the group develop programming, including a Perpetual Care Fund similar to that instituted by the Friends of Magnolia Cemetery. The Magnolia Cemetery “Friends” group evolved from an HMPS subcommittee, according to HMPS past-president Helen Wilson, who also attended the meeting. She said information about the cemetery will be added to the HMPS website at www.historicmobile.org.
Fr. Farmer said Mobile’s Catholic Cemetery differs Perilla Wlson says she hopes the next meeting, which is open to the public, will be well attended. The next informational meeting will be held at the Sarto Center of St. Pius Church. For information, call Ms. Perilla Wilson at 344-5359 or contact her via email at perilla.w@juno.com. Those wishing to contribute may do so by sending contributions to Holy Family Parish, 1400 Joyce Road, Mobile, AL 36618
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HMPS appreciates the generous support of our Corporate Partners:
Farnell Heating & AC
The Oakleigh Historic Museums are open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Daily, Year-Round Groups are welcome and special rates apply. Reservations should be made in advance for groups of more than 10. School groups are invited to picnic on the grounds after their tours.
HMPS Activities (251) 432-1281 or Email hmps@bellsouth.net
Voices that Are Gone, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. A moving Readers' Theatre using Oakleigh’s Cook’s House to explore and celebrate the experiences of persons of color living in Mobile in the 19th century. Admission: HMPS members, $20; non-members, $25. Admission includes refreshments inspired by traditional African-American recipes. Call (251) 432-6161 or email hmps@bellsouth.net
for reservations and information. Mobile Historic Homes Tour, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Visit architecturally significant private homes and sacred
spaces in selected historic districts. National Historic Preservation Month
Many activities throughout the month, TBA. Bravery & Beauty Mint Julep Party, 5-8 p.m. A celebration in honor of the June 1877 visit to Oakleigh by James A. Garfield (later a president of the U.S.) when CSA Gen. T.K. Irwin served him his first mint julep. Garfield's diary entry of that occasion states: “The bravery and beauty of Mobile were there.” HMPS members, $15; general admission, $25 per person and $45 per couple. No one under age 21 admitted. All guests receive complimentary mint juleps and non-alcoholic juleps. (Cash bar for non-julep specialty beverages.) Silent auction and live music.
HMPS is working in cooperation with the Mobile County Public School Commission and local, state and national entities to pursue restoration of this architectural treasure. Each pin, which can also be worn as a pendant, is available for purchase in the Oakleigh Gift Shop for $20 plus tax. A portion of the purchase is tax-deductible and purchasers will receive confirmation of contribution for tax purposes. For information, please call Marilyn Culpepper, Executive Director, 251-432-6161 or email hmps@bellsouth.net.
Thank you for visiting.
Historic Mobile Preservation Society is a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation. It receives principal funding through memberships and fundraising. HMPS received funding for operations and/or special programs for the 2007 fiscal year from the following entities: The City of Mobile The J.L. Bedsole Foundation The Hearin-Chandler Foundation The Crampton Trust The Community Foundation of South Alabama: "Friends of Oakleigh" fund
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will ultimately evolve into a formal board of directors, said she hopes
Catholic and non-Catholic citizens will join the effort to restore this
most historic place. The group is operating under the auspices of the
Archdiocese of Mobile with the Very Rev. Michael L. Farmer, chancellor,
serving as chaplain and the Rev. James S. Kee, S.T.L., J.C.L, judicial
vicar, as legal advisor.
The cemetery, which encompasses roughly 150 acres in
three sections, dates to1848 and is located in Toulminville. Over the
years, the cemetery has fallen into disrepair due to the ravages of
weather and time, family members moving away from the area and not
providing for care of graves, and loss of records due to fire. He said
he hopes one of the projects of FOCC will involve identifying unmarked
graves.
from
all other Catholic cemeteries in the United States in that it is not a
revenue generator. “All the other cemeteries in the U.S. are revenue
generators,” he said, adding that the lack of a friends or support group
is part of the reason Mobile’s cemetery is not a revenue generator or
self-sustaining entity. Fr. Farmer asserted that getting the Catholic
community, as well as other citizens, involved will help this cause.