With all the controversy surrounding murals in our city, I thought I would spotlight one that I haven’t seen much written about, the Southern Narrative Quilt Mural located on James Road. The artist, Jeffrey Unthank, is from Cincinnati, Ohio, and studied Fine Art and Illustration at Parsons School of Design and Columbus College of Art and Design. After relocating to Memphis, he worked …
Memphis’ First Major Pro Sports Team: The Memphis Chicks
While many of us refer to Memphis as “Hoop City,” no sport has had as long of a professional presence in Memphis as America’s pastime, baseball. Long before the Memphis Grizzlies came to the city as its first major professional sports team we had the Memphis Chicks. As a Memphis sports fan my entire life, I have always been fascinated …
Dead Men Walking in Barboro Alley
With a name that bounces around your mouth as you say it, Barboro Alley will immediately charm you with its old-fashioned stone walkway nestled between façades of peeling paint. Just stepping into the alley takes you back to another century. Except that in past centuries, you might not have taken such a pleasant stroll between the restaurants and bars you …
The Street at 409 South Main
To find a place in Memphis that appears nearly unchanged from its beginnings, and to observe a collection of architectural styles covering late-nineteenth-century vernacular, Beaux Arts, Georgian Revival, Chicago Commercial, and Art Deco, is to walk down the South Main District. It’s a place that was built with the railroads in mind. In the 400 and 500 blocks of South …
Tales of The New Daisy Theatre
The New Daisy Theatre opened at 330 Beale Street in 1942. Paul and Sam Zerilla and their partner Joe Maceri, owners of the original Daisy Theatre across the street (now known as the “Old Daisy”), wanted to add a larger facility that could support popular acts. In its first few decades, the New Daisy primarily served as a movie theater …
387 Part 2: Fred P. Gattas and the Catalog
The catalog you see above resides at 387 South Main, currently the home of Stock & Belle, previously the warehouse of Fred P. Gattas Co., Inc. You’ll find it covers “a wide field of top-grade merchandise.” Among the items are fans and coolers, picnic and barbeque equipment, flags, lawn games and furniture, gardening, leather goods, jewel boxes, clocks, men’s accessories, …
387 Part 1 – Stock & Belle
Walk through the doors at 387 South Main and you’ll be warmly greeted by Stock & Belle’s charming crew of employees. What is Stock & Belle? It’s basically a place that has everything to make you look and feel good. The bottom floor holds a store with apparel, furniture, local art, and a pantry of consumable goods. A classy salon …
The Life and Times of the French Quarter Hotel
In 1983, the corner of Madison and Cooper was home to a popular supper club called Solomon Alfred’s (formerly Godfathers). The club’s owner, plastic surgeon Dr. Garnett Murphy, thought the property might be better suited to a boutique-style hotel. He partnered with successful local hotel developers Ron Kirkpatrick (Sr. and Jr.), Don Pemberton, and Tom Talley. Inspired by the Lagniappe …
Leahy’s: A Community of Memories
“My grandfather on my father’s side owned Monte’s Drive-in restaurant across the street from Leahy’s Motel. My brother and cousins worked at the restaurant every summer. My grandfather and Mr. Leahy were friends and after working all day we walked across the street to Leahy’s to go swimming. My grandfather on my mother’s side is Frank Balton as in Balton …
The Sculptures of Peabody Park
Tucked against the train trestle on Cooper near Central, three-acre Peabody Park is a sleeper favorite of Midtowners and their children. The park was established in the early 1900s and underwent a renovation around 2000. It contains a popular splash park, a playground, a historic pavilion… and a pair of intriguing sculptures by Memphis artist Yvonne Bobo, titled “Without Boundaries.” …