Author: peggy

Tom McGehee

Tom has served as Museum Director for Bellingrath Gardens and Home for 31 years.  In his capacity as curator over the collections there, he has participated in numerous study courses dealing with decorative arts and garden estates in the United States, Great Britain, France and Germany.

In addition he has been researching the history of Mobile and south west Alabama for more than 35 years and has appeared weekly on NBC’s Gulf Coast Today with his series “Lost Mobile” while his Ask McGehee column has been a regular feature in Mobile Bay Magazine for more than 20 years.

He is a past president of the Rotary Club of Mobile where he is a Paul Harris Fellow and was named Rotarian of the Year in 2012.  He is the author of “A Century of Service Above Self:  A History of the Rotary Club of Mobile, 1914-2014.”

Tom serves on the board of the Rotary Children’s Foundation, the Friends of Magnolia Cemetery, the Historic Restoration Society and the Friends of the Alabama Governor’s Mansion.

Tom is married to the former Ceil Smith of Monroeville and he has a daughter, Megan, currently residing in Athens, Greece.

John Sledge retired from the Mobile Historic Development Commission in 2024 after 38 years of service. He currently serves as maritime historian-in-residence at the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf. He and his wife Lynn live in Fairhope.

Matthew Capps bio

Matthew Capps leads the Alabama State Parks, a division of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Alabama State Parks System manages 21 state parks, encompassing more than 50,000 acres of land and water. The parks provide opportunities and facilities from basic day-use activities to resort convention lodging, restaurants and golfing areas.

He became the Director of Alabama State Parks in 2024 after serving as its deputy director for three years. Matthew is a graduate of Auburn University and began his professional career with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant program in Mobile. He previously served as director of the Dauphin Island Parks and Beach Board and worked for the City of Mobile Parks and Recreation Department. Matthew also worked in the private sector for several years before joining the Alabama State Parks Department.