Hamilton, George B. (George Bright), 1891-1971

George Bright Hamilton was born August 12, 1891 in Washington, D.C. He married Parrie Leah Livsey and had two daughters and one son. Hamilton served as Georgia State Treasurer from 1933 to 1962, a term at the time unmatched by any other state treasurer in the nation. In 1933, Hamilton was appointed Georgia State Treasurer upon the death of M.L. Ledford, the previous state treasurer. In 1935, he became secretary for the Georgia Auditors' Association. In 1936, Governor Eugene Talmadge had Hamilton forcibly removed from office by the National Guard after Hamilton refused to honor a warrant drawn by the governor against state funds without an appropriation bill. Hamilton maintained he had not only upheld the law, he had managed to reduce operating costs of his department and increase revenue. He garnered a landslide victory from the people of Georgia later that year and was officially restored to office by legislative resolutions in 1937. In 1942 Hamilton was violently attacked outside his hotel room in Macon, Georgia. The attackers were suspected to be henchmen of Governor Talmadge. In 1945, Hamilton was elected President of the newly organized National Association of Rural Housing, which aimed to develop a nation-wide program of rural slum clearance and construction of low-cost housing. Hamilton opposed racial integration and in 1948, he resigned from his post as financial director of the National Democratic Party because party policy favored integration. In 1961, Hamilton threatened to cut off funds to the University of Georgia when it desegregated. In 1962, Hamilton resigned from the office of State Treasurer. He died of cancer in 1971 at the age of 79.

From the description of [George B. Hamilton (1891-1971)]. 1932-1971. (University of West Georgia). WorldCat record id: 645811264

George Bright Hamilton. State Treasurer, 1933-1961. State Treasurer Emeritus, 1961-1971. Democrat.

From the description of [Papers] / George Bright Hamilton. 1933-1961. (University of West Georgia). WorldCat record id: 78776232