Baby Doe's Matchless Mine

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Baby Doe's Matchless Mine was a restaurant at 2033 Golden Crest Drive atop Red Mountain near The Club and Vulcan.

Baby Doe's was a national chain which opened in Birmingham in 1979. Other locations included Atlanta, Georgia; Kansas City, Missouri; and Denver, Colorado. The restaurant featured a panoramic view of Birmingham's skyline. The restaurant building was held up by piers, and was made of weathered wood and tin roofing from old buildings in Tennessee and Arkansas. It featured 10 dining rooms, a simulated mine tunnel and a downstairs lounge-cabaret that included a bar and a sunken dance floor.

On August 10, 1983, Wanda Jones was abducted from the Baby Doe's parking lot during a private party, and taken to a house in Pinson where she was raped by several men. Three men, Stanley Wilson and brothers Kenneth and Michael Thornton, later pleaded guilty and were convicted of the crimes against Jones. Publicity about the case negatively impacted the restaurant.

Baby Doe's roof was severely damaged in the March 13 blizzard of 1993, and the restaurant subsequently closed for good. The building was later torn down.

In 2000, Specialty Restaurants of California attempted to obtain a permit to build Red Mountain Restaurant on the site. After a year and a half of delays, Specialty withdrew its plans. The Club purchased the 6 1/2 acre site on August 8, 2002 for $625,000.

References

• Coman, Victoria L. (October 11, 2000) "Eatery planned for Doe site will offer dining with a view." Birmingham News
• Coman, Victoria L. (January 2, 2002) "Restaurant work to begin in Spring 2002". Birmingham News
• Coman, Victoria L. (August 22, 2002) "The Club purchases site where Baby Doe's stood." Birmingham News