Mitchell, William Letcher, 1805-1882.

William Letcher Mitchell was born 25 August 1805 in Henry County, Va., but from the age of three he lived in Athens, Ga. Mitchell was graduated from the University of Georgia in 1825, then went to Louisville, Ky., where he studied law and was admitted to the bar. In 1827, he taught school at Hillsboro, Ga. The following year he returned to Athens and married his cousin Sarah Caroline Neisler. From 1830 to 1834, Mitchell was a tutor of mathematics at the University of Georgia. Some time after that, he began practicing law. In the late 1840s, perhaps 1847, he became chief engineer in charge of construction of the Western & Atlantic Railroad. It is said that Mitchell, though not trained in engineering, studied engineering and took the position because he objected to a plan to employ an engineer from the North. During the period Mitchell worked with the railroad, the tunnel was cut through the Little Blue Ridge and the road was completed to its terminus in Chattanooga, Tenn. In 1867, Mitchell returned to the University of Georgia as professor of law and head of the law school. Mitchell served on the board of trustees at the University of Georgia for 16 years, both as secretary and as treasurer. He was active in the Presbyterian Church and served on the Supreme Council of the Masons in the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States.

Sarah Caroline Neisler Mitchell's sister, Frances Neisler, married Robert Iverson. Both the Iversons died before their children were grown. William Letcher Mitchell was the administrator of their estate, and one of the children, James H. Iverson, lived with him in Athens. James served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Sarah also had a brother, Hugh Neisler, and sisters Anne Neisler, who married a Mr. Jolly, and Susan Neisler, who married Daniel W. Miller. Correspondence in the collection also makes reference to sisters Eliza, Martha, and Julia, and to brothers Tom and William.

William Letcher Mitchell and Sarah Caroline Neisler Mitchell had eight children together: Hugh N. Mitchell, Anne Elizabeth Mitchell, Frances Letcher Mitchell ( Fanny ), Susan Augusta Mitchell, John F. Mitchell, Julia Mitchell, Walter H. Mitchell, and William Mitchell. Anne Elizabeth married S. N. Dawson ( Shem ) and Julia married a Mr. Collins. In late 1854, following Sarah's death sometime between 1851 and 1854, William married Lucia Bass of Milledgeville, Ga., and with her had at least one child, Henry B. Mitchell.

William Letcher Mitchell died in 1882.

From the guide to the William Letcher Mitchell Papers, 1823-1929, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.)