Old Steelman Grocery

Old Steelman Grocery. . , During the Depression of the 1930s, Charles J. Steelman and his family moved to the Gulf Coast from Birmingham, Alabama seeking better prospects and to join their son "Pee Wee" Steelman who was working in Biloxi. After more than a year of working for a local grocer, Charles Steelman and other family members were able to scrape enough money together to purchase, renovate and move into their own building. There the family started the Steelman's Food Store and Meat Market in 1939. Three of the Steelman sons joined the military in the early years of world war two and the grocery closed until the end of the war and reopened in 1946. In the 1960s, the business ceased operations. , In the early 1970s, J.K. and Eleanor Lemon received and managed the property and allowed the Salvation Army to operate a Thrift Store at the site for years. , In the 1990s, there was renewed interest in buildings along Government Street including a careful renovation of the Old Steelman Grocery and creation of the adjacent Palmetto Place. , The restaurant occupying 1210 Government Street now is aptly named Government Street Grocery as a nod to the history of the building., Photo courtesy of the Ronald Steelman family, This informational sign is part of a community project led by the Historic Ocean Springs Association, and is made possible by a grant from the Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area. , We thank the City of Ocean Springs for their support of this project.