Skip to main content

Margaret Mitchell Collection

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.MSS146

Scope and Content

The Margaret Mitchell collection is comprised of material pertaining to the life of Atlanta author Margaret Mitchell, including correspondence, newspaper articles, and other printed materials. The correspondence – originals and copies of cards, letters, postcards, notes, and telegrams – provides detail into Mitchell’s professional relationships with fans and publishers, as well as her involvement with the Atlanta Historical Society. The Baugh (secretary to Stephens Mitchell, brother and executor to Mitchell’s estate), Blair (executive secretary, Atlanta Historical Society), Draper, Marsh, Oliner, and Wilson correspondence pertains to the estate of Margaret Mitchell and various projects to honor and memorialize her life and work. Personal relationships with the Harris family (publisher, Marietta Daily) and Mitchell Gibson (Mitchell’s godson) are also documented. The printed material, including booklets, programs, and other publications documents Mitchell’s private life, cultural and intellectual interests, and public recognition as an author and for her civic contributions during World War II.

Dates

  • 1863-1971

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The 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Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright.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

Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (1900 – 1949) was the daughter of Mary Isabelle “Maybelle” Stephens (1872 – 1919) and Eugene Muse Mitchell (1866 – 1944) of Atlanta, Georgia. Mary Mitchell was president of the Atlanta Woman Suffrage League and a member of Atlanta Woman’s Club, and Eugene Mitchell was an attorney and a founder or member of numerous organizations, including Atlanta Bar Association, Atlanta Historical Society, and Young Men’s Library Association. Mitchell’s brother, Stephens, was four years her senior. Mitchell attended numerous Atlanta public schools before graduating from Washington Seminary in 1918. She later attended Smith College, but withdrew after her first year to take charge of the family household following her mother’s death in January 1919. Although she made her society debut in 1920, Mitchell chose a different path than her contemporaries, taking a job at the Atlanta Journal, where she wrote under the name of “Peggy Mitchell.” From 1922 to 1926, Mitchell penned articles, book reviews, interviews, as well as profiles of Georgia Civil War generals. In 1922, Mitchell married Berrien “Red” Upshaw; however, the couple divorced two years later in October 1924. On July 04, 1925, she married John R. Marsh, a newspaperman, later a manager of the advertising department of the Georgia Power Company. The Marsh’s wedding reception was held in an apartment at 979 Crescent Avenue – a house Mitchell nicknamed “The Dump.” Soon after the marriage, Mitchell’s health deteriorated, forcing her to leave her job at the Journal to convalesce. It was during this period that she began writing Gone With The Wind (GWTW), the book that would make her famous. After the novel’s publication in 1936 by Macmillan, Mitchell was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1937. The equally famous motion picture, GWTW, had its world premiere at the Loew’s Grand Theater in Atlanta on December 15, 1939. On August 11, 1949, Mitchell was struck by an off-duty cab driver while crossing the intersection of Peachtree and 13th – a mere three blocks from “The Dump.” Margaret Mitchell died five days later. She is buried in Atlanta’s Oakland Cemetery, along with other members of her family.

Extent

1 linear ft.

Language

English

System of Arrangement

This collection is arranged alphabetically by titles supplied by staff, then chronologically. Correspondence begins with Margaret Mitchell, followed alphabetically by creator/recipient.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of various donors: 1954 (DU-54); 1965 (65-15); 1973(1973.103); 1979 (79-305); 1981 (1981.248.01); 1992 (1992.289); 1996 (1996.128, 1996.165); 2005 (2005.138); and 2006 (2006.160, 2006.194)

Separated Materials

Visual material removed (DU-54) and is housed in VA uncat oversize box 317.

General Physical Description note

Extent: 1 linear ft. (2 document cases and 1 oversized box)

Description Control

The collection was reprocessed in 2007.

Title
Margaret Mitchell Collection: ahc.MSS 146
Subtitle
An Inventory of Her Papers at the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center
Author
Inventory prepared by Paul Crater
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040