Clifford Mitchell Walker (July 4, 1877 – November 9, 1954) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

attorney and politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

. A graduate of 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 ...

in 1897, he was a member of the

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is t ...

fraternity. Walker served consecutive two-year terms as the 64th Governor of Georgia as a Democrat from 1923 to 1927, after winning with the support of the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...

. Walker made few legislative advances during his term as governor, and is largely remembered for his membership in the KKK and his inclusion of KKK leadership in policy matters throughout his term.Huff, Christopher Allen. "Clifford Walker (1877–1954)" http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/government-politics/clifford-walker-1877-1954 His additional political service included the office of Mayor of

Monroe, Georgia Monroe is a city in Walton County, Georgia, United States, serving as the county seat. It is located both one hour east of Atlanta via US 78 and GA 138 to I-20 and east of Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport and is one of the exurban c ...

. Before his gubernatorial terms, Walker served as the state attorney general from 1915 to 1920. He also was a co-founder of the Woodrow Wilson College of Law in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia. Walker made the first appointment of a

poet laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) ...

of the U.S. state of Georgia, that being

Frank Lebby Stanton Frank Lebby Stanton (February 22, 1857 – January 7, 1927), frequently credited as Frank L. Stanton, Frank Stanton or F. L. Stanton, was an American lyricist. He was also the initial columnist for the ''Atlanta Constitution'' and became the ...

in 1925. He was born in Monroe in 1877. Walker died at his home in Monroe in 1954 and was buried in the Old Baptist Cemetery in that same city.

Notes

References

Georgia State Archives Roster of State Governors

''Georgia Governor's Gravesites Field Guide (1776–2003)''
* 1877 births 1954 deaths Democratic Party governors of Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia (U.S. state) Attorneys General Mayors of places in Georgia (U.S. state) University of Georgia alumni Ku Klux Klan members {{GeorgiaUS-mayor-stub