William Markham was born in Goshen, Connecticut on October 9, 1811. He was educated in New Hartford, and worked as a farmer in McDonough, Georgia for 14 years. He married Amanda D. Berry on October 8, 1839, and they had two children.[1][2]
He moved to Atlanta in 1853, and that October, following the illness of John Mims, he filled in as mayor and won a special election soon after. During his term, a new city hall was built that was used for nearly 25 years. By 1858 he was proprietor of the Atlanta Rolling Mill, and following the Battle of Atlanta he was part of the committee of citizens who surrendered the city.[1]
Within a year of destruction of Atlanta, he had already started rebuilding commercial sites. He put up nine one-story stores with cheap temporary roofs designed to be rebuilt or improved as circumstances improved. They cost $3,000 a piece to build and were rented out to different merchants.[3]
In 1870 he lost an election for a second term as mayor from the Radical Party to another previous mayor, William Ezzard, Democrat. He dedicated the city's largest hotel, the Markham House, on November 15, 1875. It had 107 rooms, central heat and was the center of civic life until it burned to the ground in 1896, six years after the death of its builder.
William Markham died in Atlanta on November 9, 1890.[2] He was buried at Oakland Cemetery.[4]
Referencesedit
^ abThe National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. Vol. II. James T. White & Company. 1921. p. 521. Retrieved May 16, 2021 – via Google Books.
^ ab"Passed Away". The Atlanta Constitution. November 10, 1890. p. 5. Retrieved May 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^Trowbridge, J. T. (1866). Trowbridge's Tour of the South: Its Battle-Fields and Ruined Cities. L. Stebbins. Retrieved May 16, 2021 – via Google Books.
^"Markham's Funeral". The Atlanta Constitution. November 11, 1890. p. 10. Retrieved May 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
william, markham, mayor, william, markham, october, 1811, november, 1890, prominent, hotel, owner, atlanta, served, mayor, that, city, from, 1853, 1854, william, markham7th, mayor, atlantain, office, 1853, 1854personal, detailsborn, 1811, october, 1811goshen, . William Markham October 9 1811 November 9 1890 was a prominent hotel owner in Atlanta who served as mayor of that city from 1853 to 1854 William Markham7th Mayor of AtlantaIn office 1853 1854Personal detailsBorn 1811 10 09 October 9 1811Goshen ConnecticutDiedNovember 9 1890 1890 11 09 aged 79 Atlanta GeorgiaResting placeOakland CemeterySpouseAmanda D Berry m 1839 wbr OccupationHotel owner politicianSignatureBiography editWilliam Markham was born in Goshen Connecticut on October 9 1811 He was educated in New Hartford and worked as a farmer in McDonough Georgia for 14 years He married Amanda D Berry on October 8 1839 and they had two children 1 2 He moved to Atlanta in 1853 and that October following the illness of John Mims he filled in as mayor and won a special election soon after During his term a new city hall was built that was used for nearly 25 years By 1858 he was proprietor of the Atlanta Rolling Mill and following the Battle of Atlanta he was part of the committee of citizens who surrendered the city 1 Within a year of destruction of Atlanta he had already started rebuilding commercial sites He put up nine one story stores with cheap temporary roofs designed to be rebuilt or improved as circumstances improved They cost 3 000 a piece to build and were rented out to different merchants 3 In 1870 he lost an election for a second term as mayor from the Radical Party to another previous mayor William Ezzard Democrat He dedicated the city s largest hotel the Markham House on November 15 1875 It had 107 rooms central heat and was the center of civic life until it burned to the ground in 1896 six years after the death of its builder William Markham died in Atlanta on November 9 1890 2 He was buried at Oakland Cemetery 4 References edit a b The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography Vol II James T White amp Company 1921 p 521 Retrieved May 16 2021 via Google Books a b Passed Away The Atlanta Constitution November 10 1890 p 5 Retrieved May 16 2021 via Newspapers com Trowbridge J T 1866 Trowbridge s Tour of the South Its Battle Fields and Ruined Cities L Stebbins Retrieved May 16 2021 via Google Books Markham s Funeral The Atlanta Constitution November 11 1890 p 10 Retrieved May 16 2021 via Newspapers com Preceded byJohn F Mims Mayor of AtlantaNovember 1853 1854 Succeeded byWilliam M Butt Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William Markham mayor amp oldid 1084549534, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
