Peter Wiltberger Meldrim (4 December 1848 − 13 December 1933) was an attorney, politician, judge and an army officer from

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 ...

, United States. Early in his career, he worked to expand African Americans' access to education as chairman of the Georgia State Commission on the Education of Colored Persons. He served as an alderman and was elected Mayor of Savannah, Georgia in the late 1890s. In 1908, he was the chairman of the Georgia delegation to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

. Meldrim was a highly regarded attorney known for his handling of complex cases and oratory who served as a commissioner from Georgia on the

Uniform Law Commission The Uniform Law Commission (ULC), also called the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, is a non-profit, American unincorporated association. Established in 1892, the ULC aims to provide U.S. states (plus the District of Co ...

which worked to enact uniform state laws nationally. Meldrim also presented addresses on law to various state and national bar associations, served as president of the Georgia State Bar in 1904, and became chairman of the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

Committee on Jurisprudence and Law Reform. In addition, he also served as the Association's president. His home for many years in later life was the Green-Meldrim House, a U.S. National Historic Landmark.

Early life

He was born in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

, on December 4, 1848; his parents were Ralph M. Meldrim and Jane Fawcett Meldrim. He had

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

heritage and was president of the local ''Hibernian Society'' from 1887 to 1912. At age 16, he fought in the defense of Savannah against

Sherman's March to the Sea Sherman's March to the Sea (also known as the Savannah campaign or simply Sherman's March) was a military campaign of the American Civil War conducted through Georgia from November 15 until December 21, 1864, by William Tecumseh Sherman, major ...

. He was privately tutored, attended Chatham Academy, then attended the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

, Class of 1868, where he was elected a member of

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

Phi Kappa Literary Society The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and is one of the few active literary societies left in America. Founded in 1820, the society continues to meet every academic ...

, and was a charter member of the Eta Chapter of the

Chi Phi Fraternity Chi Phi () is considered by some as the oldest American men's college social fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The earliest of these organizations was for ...

. He was the Phi Beta Kappa anniversary orator. In 1869, Meldrim obtained an LL.B, then in 1871 earned an M.A., also from the

. He awarded an honorary LL.D. from the University in 1913. He married his wife, Frances P. Casey, in 1881. Meldrim became a colonel of the 1st Georgia Cavalry and later a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in the

Georgia National Guard The Georgia National Guard is the National Guard of the U.S. state of Georgia, and consists of the Georgia Army National Guard and the Georgia Air National Guard. (The Georgia State Defense Force is the third military unit of the Georgia Depar ...

Political and professional career

Meldrim was chairman of the Georgia State Commission on the Education of Colored Persons from its inception in 1891, and worked to expand African Americans' access to education.

Georgia State Senate

In 1881, General Meldrim was elected to the

Georgia State Senate The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Legal provisions The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, with the lower house being the Georgia ...

. In 1891, he was elected as an alderman of the city of Savannah, Georgia, and he ran for Mayor of Savannah in 1897, defeating

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...

Herman Myers. Two years later, though, he declined to run for re-election and Myers became mayor again. In 1908, he was the chairman of the Georgia delegation to the

held in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Legal career

Meldrim was a highly regarded attorney, known for his handling of complex cases and oratory. He served as a commissioner from Georgia on the

, which works to enact uniform state laws nationally. He presented addresses on law to various state and national bar associations, and he served as president of the Georgia State Bar in 190

Meldrim became chairman of the

Committee on Jurisprudence and Law Reform, then the Association's president in 1915. From 1917 to 1933, he was a superior court judge with the Savannah-based Eastern Judicial Circuit.

Death

General Meldrim died on 13 December 1933 at his home, the historic Green-Meldrim House, where he had resided since 1892. At the time of his death, he was still a superior court judge, president of the Georgia State Agricultural Society, a member of assorted social and civic clubs including the

Capital City Club The Capital City Club is a private social club located in Atlanta, Georgia. Chartered on May 21, 1883, it is one of the oldest private clubs in the South. History According to its charter, the purpose of the club is "to promote the pleasure, ki ...

, and a trustee of the

.Polk's Savannah City Directories

Footnotes

External links

Official Website of the Mayor of Savannah
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meldrim, Peter 1848 births 1933 deaths American people of Irish descent Mayors of Savannah, Georgia Presidents of the American Bar Association Georgia National Guard personnel Georgia (U.S. state) Democrats Superior court judges in the United States