Saturday, November 07, 2015

THE STREETS OF DAUPHIN ISLAND
(the following listing of Dauphin Island's streets is found in S. Blake McNeely's book, THE DEVELOPMENT OF DAUPHIN ISLAND, ALABAMA.http://www.southalabama.edu/mccallarchives/guides_to_collections/mcneely/mcneely.shtml
 I have added the streets' locations in relation to the four-way-stop at LeMoyne and Bienville , a Wikipedia link for the street's namesake and a Find-A-Grave link for the namesake if it applies.)
A Committee on Nomenclature of which Mr. Stephens G. Croom 
(Stephens G. Croom (Find-A-Grave link http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=113268370) was born in 1906. Initially, Croom was active in the utility industry, but ultimately devoted forty years of his life to building a successful career in the insurance business. As a key member of the USS Alabama Development Committee Board, Stephens played a pivotal role in bringing the South Dakota-class battleship USS Alabama to Mobile and developing the site into a major tourist attraction. Both Stephens and his wife, Velma Lassiter Croom(Find-A-Grave link http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=113271720 ), were politically and civically active in Mobile society. Velma served as the president of the Junior League of Mobile, Inc., from 1950 to 1951. Stephens G. Croom died in 1992.) was Chairman, carefully selected names which are significant in the long, romantic and colorful history of this Island which played a vital part in the settlement of North America and which is being developed as one of America's greatest resort, retirement and recreational areas.

The Boulevards, Avenues, Lanes and Places run east and west. Drives, Streets and Courts run north and south. All names are arranged alphabetically, beginning at the Fort Gaines Park on the East and at the Sand Dunes on the South. The names of Places and Lanes begin with the same letter as the names of the streets with which they intersect- such names are arranged alphabetically southward from Bienville Boulevard. Names selected are significant to Dauphin Island.

A house numbering system was also developed whereby lots on the Avenues, Lanes and Places are given numbers corresponding with the overall numbering on Bienville Boulevard. The lots on the Drives, Streets and Courts will be numbered in accord with the numbering system on LeMoyne Drive.

#1: ADMIRAL SEMMES AVENUE
named for Admiral Raphael Semmes, one of America's best known American naval officers, a respected citizen of Mobile who commanded the renowned Confederate ship, ALABAMA. This east-to-west street is located SE of the 4-way stop between Audubon Street on the east and Forney Johnston Drive. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_Semmes
Find-a-grave link for Admiral Semmes http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=21356

#2: ALABAMA AVENUE
named for the sovereign State of Alabama whose Governor Gordon Persons(Encyclopedia of Alabama entry for Gordon Persons http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1911 Find-A-Grave link http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7419419 )
 made the decision to build the Dauphin Island Bridge providing a substantial investment in the bridge was made by property purchasers on the Island making this development possible. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabama
This east-to-west street is located south of the 4-way stop. It begins just east of its intersection with Iberville Drive and continues west to Narvaez Street.

#3: ANNANDALE STREET
named for the ancestral home of one of those who spent years of service on behalf of Isle Dauphine.(It is the opinion of this writer that this refers to Forney Johnston. The Johnston family claims that they originated in Annandale, Scotland http://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=Johnston )This north-to-south street is SE of the 4-way stop and runs between Apalache Avenue on the north and Admiral Semmes on the south.  

#4: APALACHE AVENUE named for the Apalache Indian tribe living in the neighborhood of Mobile, which sent its chief to Isle Dauphine along with twenty-three other Indian Nations to sing their calumet of peace to Monsieur de L'Epinet, Governor General of Louisiana.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Michel_de_Lepinay ( ed. note: The Apalaches were originally from the vicinity of present-day Tallahassee but were victims of the greatest known Indian slave raid ever conducted in North America in 1702. They were enslaved by the English from Charleston and their Indian allies. Those that escaped,being converts to Roman Catholicism, sought sanctuary from the French on Mobile Bay and received refuge. The Apalache River in the Mobile Delta takes its name from this East Florida tribe.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apalachee#Spanish_missions_and_18th-century_war ) This east-to-west street is SE of the 4-way stop and runs between Audubon Street on the east and Forney Johnston Drive on the west.

#5: Audubon Street
named for the great artist, John James Audubon, who is said to have painted the hummingbird https://www.audubon.org/news/what-mr-audubon-thought-hummingbirds
 in the famous Birds of America while visiting in Mobile.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_James_Audubon This north-to-south street is east of the 4-way stop and runs from Cavalier Circle on Colony Cove north of Bienville to Audubon Place on the south. Find-A-Grave link for Audubon http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6102721

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