Robert Foster Maddox (April 4, 1870 – 1965) was the 41st Mayor of

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton County, the mos ...

Biography

Maddox was born on April 4, 1870 to Robert Flournoy Maddox, an early Atlanta settler and war hero. He was educated in public school, and 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 ...

until 1887 when he completed studies at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

. He was

chairman of the board The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the group ...

of the Atlanta & Lowry National Bank part of which had been founded by his father. In 1908, he served as a Fulton County commissioner and the next year he was elected Atlanta's mayor. He had an active term, issuing the city's first large bond ($3 million) which was used for new schools, sewage disposal plants and enlarging the Atlanta Water Works. He also had built an addition to

Grady Memorial Hospital Grady Memorial Hospital, frequently referred to as Grady Hospital or simply Grady, is the public hospital for the city of Atlanta. It is the tenth-largest public hospital in the United States, and one of the busiest Level I trauma centers in th ...

and via many trips to Washington, D.C. was able to purchase the old post office for $70,000 to be used as the City Halls of Atlanta. During his term, the city doubled in scope: adding Oakland City among other neighborhoods. He died in 1965.

Legacy

When Robert Maddox was in his 80s, Vernon E. Jordan Jr. served as his chauffeur."American Odyssey",

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

, by Vernon E. Jordan Jr., Oct 29, 2001

Maddox Park Maddox Park is a community park located in the west side of Atlanta (in the Bankhead neighborhood), across Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway from Bankhead MARTA station. It is approximately west of Georgia Tech. The park has an existing rail line r ...

in Atlanta's Bankhead neighborhood is named in his honor. The park was dedicated in 1931. He lies in the Maddox mausoleum (with his father) in Oakland Cemetery. Maddox Road in Morrow, Georgia is named after him, along with a Clayton County Parks and Recreation park, playground, and basketball court in Morrow, Ga.

References

External links

"American Odyssey"

, Oct 29, 2001
Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
Emory University
Robert Foster Maddox papers, 1855-1923
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maddox, Robert Foster 1870 births 1965 deaths Fulton County commissioners University of Georgia alumni Harvard University alumni Mayors of Atlanta Burials at Oakland Cemetery (Atlanta)