Additional Structures

 

The following chronologically listed inns and boarding houses existed at Ocean Springs.  They were either short-lived or insufficient information exists to interpret their history with any degree of certitude.

 

AMES HOTEL PROPERTY

This old property was located in the W/2 of the SE/4 of Section 19, T7S-R8W.  It was also known as the Miss Eliza Ames place on Cemetery Road, now Sunset.  The Ames Hotel was demolished circa 1917, and some materials from this building were utilized to build the Rosambeau Cottage (now Thomas Gautier) at 420 Jackson Avenue.

            Miss Ames was the daughter of Irish emigre and pioneer settler, John Ames (1797-1852+), who received a patent on one hundred-twenty acres of land in the SE/4 of Section 19 in 1848.  Ames made his livelihood as a collier and reared a family with his wife, Helen Ames (b. 1814).  Their children were: Thomas Ames (1843-1906), Elizabeth Ames (1845-1917), William Ames (1848-1922), and Jeremiah Ames (1852 –ca 1920).

            The Ames family made an indelible mark on the history of Ocean Springs during the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1878.  Miss Eliza Ames and her brothers worked day and night caring for the sick without remuneration.  They also buried the dead. 

            In 1884, Eliza Ames sold land south of the City Cemetery to the Catholic Church for a cemetery which was called St. Alphonsus.  The two cemeteries grew together and we now know them as the Evergreen Cemetery.

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

Ray L. Bellande, Cemeteries Near Ocean Springs, Jackson County, Mississippi, (Bellande:  Ocean Springs-1992), p. 73.

 

The Jackson County Times, "Eliza Ames Obit", January 26, 1917, p. 1.

 

 

OAK COTTAGE

This facility was located on the Front Beach about one thousand feet west of Martin Avenue in Lots 18 and 19 of Block 17 (Culmseig Map 1854).  It was owned by an Irish immigrant, Julia Ward (1830-1894+), wife of John N. Ward, who acquired the grounds from George A. Cox in the early 1870s.  The Ward children were:  Albert (b. 1862), Ida L. Franco (1864-1906), and Charles (b. 1869).  Ida was the wife of John Franco (1859-1935).  She died while returning from Mineral Springs, Texas in 1906.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 4, pp. 477-478 and The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, March 9, 1906)

Mrs. Ward also owned Lots 16, 17, and 18 of Block 16, and Lot 17 of Block 17 (Culmseig Map 1854).  Some of her land was later acquired by W.B. Schmidt of New Orleans.

A reporter for The Star of Pascagoula reported in June 1874, that the Oak Cottage was "a perfect gem of a place, delightfully situated, and elegant surroundings".  Mrs. Ward was described as hospitable and kind.  She had spared no expense or inconvenience to prepare her home on the bay front for her guests.  The grounds of the Oak Cottage were well done, the dining room clean, and food and drink suitable for both sexes. 

Julia Ward advertised her inn in the The Star of Pascagoula on September 26, 1874 as follows:

 

OAK COTTAGE "Family Boarding House" Mrs. Julia Ward, Proprietress (p. 3, c. 5)

 

The property was mortgaged to the St. Joseph's Academy of Bay St. Louis in July 1880 for $752.  Mrs. Ward was obligated to the school this sum for tuition, piano lessons, and doctor's fees utilized by her children.

In July 1884, Tom Doroughty, a pugilist, stayed at Oak Cottage with his two sparring partners.  He was preparing for a prize fight at NOLA with a boxer named Gould.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, July 25, 1884, p. 3)

In May 1894, the Ward family sold their Oak Cottage grounds to Charles W. Ziegler of New Orleans.  Ziegler established a residence here called "Lake View".(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 15, p. 480)

 

REFERENCES:

 

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Dots”, July 25, 1884.

The Pascagoula Democratic-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, March 9, 1906.

The Star of Pascagoula, "Our Sea Coast", June 6, 1874, p. 2.

The Star of Pascagoula, "A Trip Along The Coast", July 31, 1875, p. 2.

 

 

 

JOACHIM COTTAGE

The location of the Joachim Cottage was probably on LaFontaine Avenue west of the small craft harbor.  At this time, Benjamin Franklin Joachim (1853-1925), called B.F., owned lands in Lots 26, 27, 28, and 29 of Block 36 (Culmseig Map 1854).  He advertised in The Pascagoula Democrat-Star on August 10, 1894 as:

 

JOACHIM COTTAGE B.F. Joachim, Proprietor Board by the Day, Week, or Month

 

            Joachim and his wife, Rosa Bokenfohr (1861-1934) were born in New Orleans of German immigrant parents.  They came to Ocean Springs about 1888 because of health reasons.  Their children were:  B.F. "Frank" (1882-1970), Josephine E. Joachim (b. 1884), Fred W. Joachim (1886-1887), Uriah S. (b. 1888), Elizabeth B. Joachim (b. 1891). 

            In 1899, B.F. Joachim also represented Jac. Bokenfohr a fruit and produce wholesaler from New Orleans.  Bokenfohr advertised that "carries everything in a first class produce house".

            Joachim probably closed his boarding house in 1905 as he started a lumber yard, Builder's Supply, on the south bank of Fort Bayou that year.  It was located just west of Dr. Powell's Bayou Inn, now Aunt Jenny's.  Joachim sold the lumber business to Ellis Handy in the 1920s.

 

REFERENCES:

 

Regina Hines Ellison, Ocean Springs, 1892 (2nd Edition), (Lewis Printing Services: Pascagoula-1991), pp. 71-73.

 The Biloxi Daily Herald, January 1, 1899, p. 8.

 

 

MRS. J. M. BOYD-mentioned in The Pascagoula Democrat-Star of January 31, 1896. No information.

 

BUTLER HOUSE-mentioned in The Pascagoula Democrat-Star of August 28, 1896.  No information.

 

MANY OAKS - Many Oaks (1909) was the estate of New Orleanian John B. Honor (1856-1929) and his wife, Ocean Springs native, Margaret Soden (1860-1932).  It is located on the Front Beach at present day 315 Front Beach Drive, and is the estate and residence of Mary Canada Zala Jensen. 

            The Ocean Springs News of September 25, 1909, advertised it as follows:

 

FOR RENT On the beach at Ocean Springs, Mississippi HONOR PLACE Three modern cottages, furnished, electric lights, telephones, artesian water.  Charming view of the Missis- sippi Sound.  Electric lights on grounds. Renting season November to May Apply to any Real Estate agent in Ocean Springs, or to Jno. B. Honor, 227 S. Front St., New Orleans

                       

            In March 1918, Fred S. Bradford (1878-1951), a local building contractor, commenced a large Dutch colonial style house for Honor which was to cost $15,000.  It was completed in the late summer or fall of 1918 using local labor.  This grand home stands today and is called "Many Oaks".

            The winter of 1921-1922 saw Mrs. Honor open her new home to boarders.  The Jackson County Times of November 12 and 19, 1921 advertised the Honor House as "open for winter guests-adults preferred" and having"furnace heat, private baths, hot and cold water, handsomely furnished, large and beautiful grounds".

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, March 9, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, July 13, 1918.