Lester Maddox
| Lester Maddox | |
|---|---|
| 75th Governor of Georgia | |
|
In office January 11, 1967 – January 12, 1971 |
|
| Lieutenant | George Smith |
| Preceded by | Carl Sanders |
| Succeeded by | Jimmy Carter |
| 7th Lieutenant Governor of Georgia | |
|
In office January 12, 1971 – January 14, 1975 |
|
| Governor | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | George Smith |
| Succeeded by | Zell Miller |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Lester Garfield Maddox September 30, 1915 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | June 25, 2003 (aged 87) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Resting place | Arlington Memorial Park Sandy Springs, Georgia |
| Political party |
Democratic (Before 1976) American Independent (1976–1992) Republican (1992–2003) |
| Spouse(s) | Hattie Virginia Cox (1918–1997) |
| Children | Linda Virginia Lester Larry |
| Religion | Baptist |
Lester Garfield Maddox, Sr. (September 30, 1915 – June 25, 2003) was an American politician who served as the 75th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1967 to 1971. A populist Democrat, Maddox came to prominence as a staunch segregationist, when he refused to serve black customers in his Atlanta restaurant, in defiance of the Civil Rights Act. Later he served as Lieutenant Governor during the time that Jimmy Carter was Governor.
Maddox was born in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, the second of seven children born to Dean Garfield Maddox, a steelworker, and his wife, the former Flonnie Castleberry. Maddox left school shortly before graduation to help support the family by taking odd jobs, including real estate and grocery. He received his high school diploma through correspondence courses. Maddox worked at the Bell Bomber factory in Marietta, Georgia during World War II.
In 1944, Maddox, along with his wife, Hattie Virginia (née Cox, 1918–1997), used $400 in savings to open a combination grocery store and restaurant called Lester's Grill. Building on that success, the couple then bought property on Hemphill Avenue off the Georgia Tech campus to open up the Pickrick Restaurant.
Maddox made the Pickrick a family affair, with his wife and children working side-by-side with him. Known for its simple, inexpensive Southern cuisine, including its specialty, skillet-fried chicken, the Pickrick soon became a thriving business. The restaurant also provided Maddox with his first political forum. He placed advertising which featured cartoon chickens in the Atlanta newspapers. Following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision of the United States Supreme Court, these restaurant ads began to feature the cartoon chickens commenting on the political questions of the day. However, Maddox's refusal to adjust to changes following the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 manifested itself when he filed a lawsuit to continue his segregationist policies. Maddox said that he would close his restaurant rather than serve African Americans. An initial group of black demonstrators came to the restaurant but did not enter when Maddox informed them that he had a large number of black employees. In April 1964, more African Americans attempted to enter the restaurant. Maddox confronted the group with a bare ax handle. Maddox provides the following account of the events:
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