Major General Marion Williamson papers
Scope and Content
This collection contains Georgia National Guard Annuals; a National Guard register; an army Staff Officer's field manual; a Georgia statistical register; and a United States Army Register of Retired Personnel. There are also awards and certificates that Williamson received during his education, military career, and career in the Georgia Department of Labor. In addition, there are membership and identifications cards from various civic and federal organizations; a certificate to the Georgia Bar for Eugene Harold Sheets (1906-1980); a scrapbook of newspaper clippings and World War II photos; and three LP recordings titled "Advisory Council." Of particular note is a State Director of Selective Service for Georgia appointment signed by President Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) and a 1942 German P.O.W. tag from an unidentified German prisoner.
The collection also has an oral history in which Williamson discusses his education; military training and service; and careers in law and public service. Specific topics include his deployment during World War II to Algiers; his time in the Labor Department, Georgia Selective Service, and Georgia Public Service Commission, where he responded to conflicts in Cartersville and Elberton, Georgia, caused by racial tension. He also recalls working with Georgia Labor Commissioners Ben T. Huiet (1895-1987), General George S. Patton, and Employment Security administrator Homer Adkins (1890-1964), amongst others.
Dates
- 1924-1983, undated
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. All requests to publish, quote, or reproduce must be submitted through the Kenan Research Center.
Administrative/Biographical History
Marion Williamson (1902-1989) was born in Oconee Heights, Georgia, to Horace Marion (1870-1920) and Mary Maude Evans Williamson (1872-1964). He was a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) student at Athens High School and Emory University, where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Georgia National Guard in Atlanta. In 1924, he was promoted to a 1st lieutenant. He completed United States Army Infantry School in 1926. Williamson then resumed his law studies at Emory University, graduating in 1928 and joining the Georgia Bar. He married Elizabeth Cooper (1906-1999), and they had one child, Elizabeth Endicott (1934-1987).
In the 1930s, Williamson was active in the 122nd Infantry Regiment of the Georgia National Guard, and in 1938 he joined the Georgia Department of Labor. During World War II, he served under General George Patton (1885-1945), General Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969), General Mark Clark (1896-1984), and British Field Marshal Sir Henry Maitland Wilson (1881-1964) and served in North Africa. In 1940 he was promoted to major and became the first State Director of Selective Service for Georgia until 1941. From 1944 to approximately 1964, Williamson served as the Director of the Georgia Department of Labor Employment Security Agency. He retired from the Georgia National Guard as a major general in 1954, Aide de Camp in 1959, and Governor of Staff in 1963. Williamson resided in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Extent
4.83 linear ft. (three rpm vinyl discs, two document cases, two oversize boxes, and one digital audio recording)
Language
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged alphabetically according to titles supplied by staff.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
The three "Advisory Council" recordings were made on 33 1/3 RPM rpm vinyl discs and can be made accessible only through conversion to digital surrogates. Patrons who seek access are responsible for digital conversion costs.
The Major General Marion Williamson interview was made on audio cassett and has been digitized. Patrons who seek access must use the digital copy available at https://album.atlantahistorycenter.com/digital/collection/p17222coll31.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift, 1989
Bias in Description
As archivists, we acknowledge our role as stewards of information. We choose how individuals and organizations are represented and described in our archives. We are not neutral, and bias is reflected in our descriptions, which may not accurately convey the racist or offensive aspects of collection materials. Archivists make mistakes and might use poor judgment. In working with this collection, we often re-use language used by the former owners of the material. This language provides context but often includes bias and prejudices reflective of the time in which it was created. The Kenan Research Center’s work is ongoing to implement reparative language where Library of Congress subject terms are inaccurate and obsolete.
Kenan Research Center welcomes feedback and questions regarding our archival descriptions. If you encounter harmful, offensive, or insensitive terminology or descriptions, please let us know by emailing reference@atlantahistorycenter.com. Your comments are essential to our work to create inclusive and thoughtful description.
Processing Information
This collection was reprocessed in 2024.
- African Americans -- Violence against
- Atlanta (Ga.) -- Race relations
- Cooper, Elizabeth, 1906-1999
- Georgia -- Officials and employees
- Georgia -- Politics and government
- Georgia Public Service Commission
- Georgia. Department of Labor
- Georgia. National Guard
- Lynching -- Georgia
- Prisoners of war
- Retired military personnel -- Georgia
- Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945
- Sheets, Eugene Harold, 1906-1980
- Talmadge, Eugene, 1884-1946
- United States. Army
- Veterans -- Georgia
- Williamson, Marion, General, 1902-1989
- World War, 1939-1945
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, American
- Title
- Major General Marion Williamson papers
- Subtitle
- ahc.MSS851
- Date
- 2024
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository