Maxine Sykes

Maxine Deerman Sykes (born April 10, 1921; died January 17, 2015) was a co-founder, with her husband Bob, of Bob Sykes BBQ in Bessemer.

The Sykeses opened their first restaurant, The Ice Spot, in Central Park in 1957. They opened Bob's Hickory Bar-B-Q a few years later just down the street. Eventually they tired of the long hours and began franchising the name to more than a dozen operators in North Alabama and Tennessee. In 1966 the couple returned to the barbecue business and opened a new restaurant in Five Points West, then moved two years later to Bessemer.

After Bob Sykes suffered a stroke in 1970, Maxine took over the business, terminating the franchise agreements to focus her attention on the main store, which she managed along with their son, Van. Together they moved the restaurant to its present location on Bessemer Road in 1977.

Sykes died in 2015 and is buried at Elmwood Cemetery.

References

• "Maxine Sykes" obituary (January 19, 2015) The Birmingham News
• "Maxine Sykes, co-founder of Bob Sykes Bar-B-Q, dies." (January 19, 2015) Alabamas13.com