From The Peabody to Prince Mongo’s Castle, a look at Hodges’ real estate legacy
Another Hodges property is at 481-487 S. Main St., right next to the Arrive Hotel. The South Main property consists of three connected buildings on one parcel. Built in 1923, the two-story buildings total 22,967 square feet. They have five upstairs apartments. (Andy Ashby/The Daily Memphian)
Robert “Prince Mongo” Hodges was known for a variety of roles in his lifetime, including perennial mayoral candidate, nightclub owner and possibly a 333-year-old native of the planet Zambodia.
He also had an interesting history as a property owner, with some buildings still listed for sale.
One of Hodges’ bolder real estate attempts happened in 1975, when he made a $100,000 bid to buy the Peabody Hotel out of receivership. Philip Belz and Jack Belz made the winning $400,000 offer and later renovated “The South’s Grand Hotel.”
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Andy Ashby
Andy Ashby covers commercial real estate and economic development. He has worked locally at the Germantown News, the DeSoto County Tribune, the Daily News and the Memphis Business Journal. He graduated from the University of Tennessee, where he photographed the 1998 National Championship game. Email tips or story ideas to aashby@dailymemphian.com
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