Mobile in Mobile County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Bettie Hunter House

Photographed By Mark Hilton, July 26, 2015

1. Bettie Hunter House Marker

Inscription. Built in 1878 in the Italianate style. In 1852, Bettie Hunter was born a slave in Dallas County, Alabama and later moved to Mobile after the Civil War. She and her brother, Henry Hunter, had a profitable carriage business in downtown Mobile. She died childless at the age of 27 and the house was left to her family.

Erected by The African-American Heritage Trail of Mobile. (Marker Number 4.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Industry & Commerce • Notable Buildings • Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the Dora Franklin Finley African-American Heritage Trail of Mobile series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1878.

Location. 30° 41.438′ N, 88° 2.934′ W. Marker is in Mobile, Alabama, in Mobile County. Marker is on St Francis Street, 0.1 miles west of North Lawrence Street, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 504 St Francis Street, Mobile AL 36602, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. John L. LeFlore (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Dr. Thomas N. Harris (about 400 feet away); Andrew N. Johnson (about 400 feet away); Creole Firehouse #1

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(about 700 feet away); Dr. H. Roger Williams (about 700 feet away); St. Louis Street Missionary Baptist Church (approx. 0.2 miles away); Shaarai Shomayim (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mobile.

Regarding Bettie Hunter House. Bettie Hunter was born in 1852 in Cahaba, Alabama. As a point of reference, this was the same year Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin, and Hunter was eleven years old when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Cahaba had declined economically from it's formerly prosperous days as the first state capital of Alabama. Simultaneously Mobile gained great economic importance, especially after the fall of New Orleans in 1862 made Mobile the major gulf port of the South. Rather than continuing the agricultural work of her slave days, Bettie Hunter moved to Mobile to seek economic opportunities in the city.

Bettie Hunter's descendants still maintain the property today. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 for architectural and historic value.

Also see . . .

Bettie Hunter House image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mark Hilton, July 26, 2015

2. Bettie Hunter House

Wikipedia article on house. (Submitted on July 28, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

View looking down St Francis Street. image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mark Hilton, July 26, 2015

3. View looking down St Francis Street.

Bettie Hunter House circa 2008 & in July 2015. image. Click for full size.

Public Domain/Mark Hilton

4. Bettie Hunter House circa 2008 & in July 2015.

Photos shows the aging of the house in just 8 years.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 30, 2020. It was originally submitted on July 28, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,193 times since then and 63 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 28, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.