ROYAL
DIXON & CHESTER SNOWDEN Author Royal
Dixon and artist Chester Snowden were Houston's gay "power-couple"
for over three decades, from 1929 to 1962. They were well known to those
in Houston's art circles, and were regular dinner guests of Miss Ima
Hogg at her Bayou Bend mansion. The men nicknamed their home "Camellia Place". The grounds were lush with shrubs, trees and vines that crept up the walls of their home, and filled it with fragrance. A visitor in 1940 described their home as "a jungle of plants and birds in gilded cages". The polite code of the times, to indicate gay partners was: "They share a studio together." But the men balked at allowing their relationship to be completely written off. Snowden legally changed his middle name to Dixon. They held a joint checking account, with both names printed at the top of their checks, and both signed at the bottom. During the holidays, they mailed out cards with their names printed one beside the other. Dixon passed away in December
1962. Snowden continued to live at 1310 Truxillo. He made social appearances,
taught art classes and judged exhibits, until his death in 1984.
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