Alfred “Al” J. Katool, Sr. was born in Jackson, Mississippi, on November 22, 1929. My interview with Mr. Katool took place on October 13, 2017, in the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse at 143 Cedars of Lebanon Rd. in Jackson. Katool is the treasurer of the club, and he and his family have been members since it began in the mid-1930s.

This photo was taken in the front yard of the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse in Jackson. Katool said that a club member brought the cedar tree that stands behind him from Lebanon during the first years of the club’s existence.

Mr. Katool still lives in Jackson, Mississippi.

This interview took place at the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse in Jackson, Mississippi, on October 13, 2017.

Read Al Katool's description of the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse here.

Audio Clips

Alfred J. Katool, Sr. talks about

• his family's journey to America from Mount Lebanon
• the early days of the Cedars of Lebanon club
• growing up in the Jim Crow South
• his father opening restaurants in Jackson
• his mother cooking

Photos in this collection include (left to right):

Full sized images can be downloaded (see hyperlinks).

Alfred J Katool, Sr.’s paternal great-grandparents in Mount Lebanon, Syria, in 1898, with his father, Joseph Katool (top right), and others

The entryway to the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse in Jackson

A photo, dated July 1925, of a gathering of the Jolly Club, a predecessor of the Cedars of Lebanon club

The foyer of the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse in Jackson

Sign-in book in the foyer of the Cedars of Lebanon clubhouse in Jackson

Al Katool