County: Hale  |   Attraction Types: Historic Site, Museum

“Magnolia Grove, an excellent example of temple-style Greek Revival architecture, was built around 1840 as a town house by Isaac and Sarah Croom, whose plantations were about 20 miles south of Greensboro near Faunsdale. The main house and three dependencies are preserved on 15 acres. The house is a two-story masonry structure, built with bricks that were manufactured locally. The front facade is stuccoed, including the pediment. The sides and rear were left with the brick face exposed. In 1879, the house was purchased by Sallie Pearson Hobson, a niece of Mrs. Croom. Her son, Richmond Pearson Hobson, became a naval hero during the Spanish-American War, and he later served in the United States Congress. In 1943, the Hobson family deeded Magnolia Grove to the state of Alabama to serve as a memorial to Richmond Pearson Hobson.

Nationally significant as the boyhood home of Spanish-American War hero and U.S. Congressman Richmond Pearson Hobson, Magnolia Grove is a Southern archetype of what many tourists expect to see in the Deep South. As Hobson’s house, however, it presents a more fully-rounded interpretation of our complex regional history.

In addition to his military fame, he was a Progressive-era politician who championed women’s rights and civil rights, as well as a national leader in the fight against alcohol and drug abuse.

Friday – Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.