Note: This is part of a series spotlighting residents of Old Live Oak, whose stories are sometimes told during the haunted history tours conducted by the local historic preservation society. Additionally, Dr. Mabry is in somewhat rarefied company, having a street named after him: I plan to dig into the other Selmians so spotlighted. Unfortunately, there is not much information on Dr. Mabry available, but such as I have — give I thee.

Dr. Albert Gallaton Mabry (1810 – 1874) was born in Old Virginia, Southampton County. Educated at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating there in 1837, he became a prominent figure in Alabama medical circles after moving here in 1843, and proposed the development of an insane hospital while pioneering treatments on yellow fever. ¹He built a house, which still stands today, and was an active member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church², which had just been established with not quite a score of members. Although known as a medical professional, he was quite active in governmental affairs. He was elected to represent Dallas County in the Alabama house of representatives, and during the War, he was partially responsible for facilitating the creation of the Arsenal in Selma, working with Colonel J.L. White to that end. While in the legislature, he was a member of the Committee of Ways and Means, and became one of the first Trustees of the Asylum for the Insane³. He repeatedly ran to serve as Selma city councilor for ward 2, winning in 1862. His tenure in the house ended in 1865, presumably owing to the war and the military rule which followed defeat. He nonetheless found a way to serve, being appointed to the Board of Health, as well as serving on the board of Dallas Academy. ⁴ Dr Mabry died in 1874 in his home, and was sadly preceded two years in death by his son, the young attorney Albert G. Mabry Jr. Young Albert was already a beloved and accomplished figure in Selma, and was officially honored by the Bar Association after his death of typhus. ⁵

1. John Hardee, Selma, Her Institutions and her Men (Selma, Alabama: Times Book and Job Off., 1879; reprinted, Spartanburg, SC: The Reprint Company, 1978), 178. ↩︎
2. Ibid, 122. ↩︎
3. William Garret, Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama for Thirty Years (Atlanta: Plantation Publishing Company’s Press, 1872). 666. ↩︎
4. Hardee, 90. ↩︎
5. The Times-Argus, December 13 1872. 3. ↩︎