William Anderson Pledger (1852 - 1904) was a lawyer, newspaper publisher, and politician in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. He is credited as the first African American lawyer in Atlanta and his political roles and efforts led the way for many who followed. Pledger was born near Jonesboro in 1852. His mother was a slave and he had a white father. He studied at

Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Clark Atlanta is the first Historically Black College or University (HBCU) in the Southern United States. Fou ...

and then taught in Athens, Georgia. Early in his career he worked on a railroad with

Monroe Morton Monroe Bowers Morton, nicknamed Pink Morton (July 31, 1856 – February 12, 1919) was a prominent building owner, publisher, building contractor, developer, and postmaster in late 19th-century Georgia. An African American, he lived most of his life ...

. Members of the

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closed the school he worked at in 1872. A staunch Republican Party supporter, Pledger gave stump speeches and became a party delegate. He started a series of newspapers. He owned and edited the '' Athens Blade'' with William Henry Heard. He moved it to Atlanta and renamed it the ''Atlanta Defiant'' before returning it to Athens. Henry Lincoln Johnson in the New York Age on 19 September 1925, page 1 of 2

Henry Lincoln Johnson in the New York Age on 19 September 1925, page 1 of 2

Henry Lincoln Johnson Henry Lincoln "Linc" Johnson (July 27, 1870 – September 10, 1925) was an American attorney and politician from the state of Georgia. He is best remembered as one of the most prominent African-American Republicans of the first two decades of t ...

was his law partner and succeeded him in office. Pledger actively backed Thomas Reed in the 1896 election cycle, although he was ultimately unsuccessful as William McKinley won the presidency and the Republican nomination. Pledger was buried in the

Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery was founded in 1882 as a cemetery for African AmericansOfficial website in the 216th general militia district, Athens, Georgia, Athens, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia area.Weeks, 1999 Nine acres in size, it contains an esti ...

in Athens, Georgia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pledger, Bill 1852 births 1904 deaths Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Editors of Georgia (U.S. state) newspapers Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans