Home Page Front Page Then and Now E-Mail February 18, 1997

by Tom McGehee

A whimsical turreted castle once occupied the north side of Government Street just west of South Georgia Avenue. The Queen Anne structure with its wrap- around porch and varied spindlework was originally home to the family of Hugh Monroe Price.

Mr. Price was the owner of H.M. Price Hardware on South Water Street offering "Hardware, Stoves, Tired Wheels and Agricultural Implements." Price occupied the home until his death in 1920. The home went through a series of occupants during the next decades as both a private residence and a rooming house.

By the time of this photograph in 1957, the house had been numbered 1254 Government Street and has a sign proclaiming itself "The Colonial Oaks" apartments. The photo was taken by a realtor and a subsequent owner razed the structure to provide a site for the Dobbs House Snack Bar Restaurant.

That institution survived until the early 1970's when it was reopened as the Steak and Egg Restaurant. That renowned establishment has recently closed its doors.

Above Left: Photo courtesy of University of South Alabama Archives, Marx Collection. Above Right: Photo by Kevin Marston