5992 Quince Rd. and Park Ave. Memphis, TN
Circa 1929. Adirondack Rustic style
Clarence Saunders lost his initial fortune, dream home Cla-Le-Clare and company in a bad financial turn. After the Piggy-Wiggly fiasco, Saunders worked to recover his fortune and developed a few concepts under the name Keedoozle and Clarence Saunders, Sole Owner of My Name Stores.
With new ventures, Saunders made money again and created a new network of grocery stores - over 1,000 stores across the United States. Clarence Saunders and Patricia Houston Bamberg purchased a former thoroughbred horse farm east of Memphis and built the 7,000 square foot home in Adirondack Rustic Architecture style. The home was surrounded by 500 acres. Annswood was named for the Saunders’ youngest daughter Ann.
In addition to his new store empire, Saunders also established the only independent football team in the United States - the Sole Owner Tigers. They practiced on his estate, and in 1929, the Tigers surprisingly beat the Green Bay Packers and then the Chicago Bears with Red Grange. That year, the Tigers were declared National Champions. But again, debt caught up with Saunders, and he lost both his estate and football team.
The estate was bought by Bill Terry, a Memphis native and baseball Hall of Famer. He converted the land back to a farm and dairy. Later, he sold the property to his brother-in-law, Ira Lichterman.
In 1944, Ira Jack Lichterman (1897-1963) and Lottie Loewenberg Lichterman (1897-1985) bought the property. Lichterman was a New York native and have traveled to the South as a salesman/ drummer in the shoe repair supply business. He settled in Memphis and wed Lottie Loewenberg. Lottie's father was William Loewenberg who was prominent in the Memphis Jewish community. The groom and father-in-law went into business together and formed Southern Leather Company, which grew to the world's largest leather house. Later, they also owned Air Temp, a heating and air conditioning company. Lichterman was also chairman of Mills Morris Company, vice-president of Perkins Oil Comp., president of Penn Leather in Philadelphia. Lottie was active in the Memphis Garden Club and Women's Exchange. They continued the dairy operations.

About 20 years later, after Lichterman's death, Loewenberg donated 12 acres and the home to the City of Memphis. The Memphis Parks Commission opened the park in 1977, and enlarged the land over the years, and in 1983, the site of 65 acres was renamed the Lichterman Nature Center. The Anneswood home served the public for about a decade before being destroyed by fire in 1994. NR 1989 See Cla-Le-Clare
Sources:Â
A History Lover's Guide to Memphis & Shelby Co., bill Patton,2020
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