William Y. Atkinson Article Index for
William Y
Website Links For
William
 

Information About

William Y. Atkinson




Atkinson graduated from the University Of Georgia with an LL.B. (law degree) in 1877. He married Susie Cobb Milton in 1880 . (Their son,'William Yates Atkinson, Jr., was the Georgia Democratic state chair in 1942 as well as a Georgia state Supreme Court justice from 1943 to 1948.)

The elder Atkinson was the solicitor of the Coweta Superior Court circuit. He then represented Coweta County as a member of the Georgia House Of Representatives (1886-94), where he was the speaker, or presiding officer, during the last two years. He was also the Georgia Democratic Party state chair from 1890 to 1892.

Atkison died on August 8 , 1899 in Newnan, Georgia . He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in that city.

Other notable facts about Atkinson:
  • He hired the first woman salaried employee in state government, Ellen Dortch, as assistant state librarian.

  • Atkinson County, Georgia is named for him.

  • He vetoed a law that would have prohibited football in the state.

  • As a state representative, he introduced a bill that established the Georgia Normal and Industrial College, which later became Georgia College And State University in Milledgeville, Georgia .