Today’s best resource for Atlanta’s history was written over 60 years ago by the city’s only official historian ever – Franklin Garrett.
Though Franklin had a law degree, his true passion was history. In the 1930s, he recorded every cemetery within 30 miles of downtown Atlanta, traveling mostly on bicycle. Franklin’s survey of Atlanta’s history, Atlanta and Environs: A Chronicle of its People and Events, is three volumes and over 3,000 pages total.
Following his 28-year job as Coca-Cola’s historian, he served as president of the Atlanta History Center, which would often host “Stump Franklin” history trivia nights.
– Caroline Parsley, The 100 Companies