The Place:
From their website: "Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the busiest and most efficient airport in the world and, by some accounts, the best in North America. ATL is the economic jewel of Georgia, generating a $34.8 billion economic impact for metro Atlanta and providing more than 63,000 jobs on-site, making it the state’s largest employer.
Hartsfield-Jackson is a global gateway, offering nonstop service to more than 150 domestic and 70 international destinations. These locales include major commercial centers in Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Africa, and South and Central America. ATL also holds the distinction of being the first airport in the world to serve more than 100 million passengers in a single year.
In many ways, Hartsfield-Jackson is more than an airport. It’s also a destination. ATL’s award-winning concessions program features more than 300 commercial venues meeting guests’ shopping, dining and service needs. And its art program integrates permanent and rotating exhibits and musical performances into the fabric of the guest experience." (
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The Persons: (From Wikipedia)
Maynard Jackson - "Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr. (March 23, 1938 – June 23, 2003) was an American politician and attorney from Georgia, a member of the Democratic Party, and elected in 1973 at the age of 35 as the first black mayor of Atlanta, Georgia and of any major city in the South. He served three terms (1974–1982, 1990–1994), making him the second longest-serving mayor of Atlanta, after six-term mayor (1937–1941, 1942–1962) William B. Hartsfield.
He is notable also for public works projects, primarily the new Maynard H. Jackson International terminal at the Atlanta airport, and for greatly increasing minority business participation in the city. After his death, the Atlanta Hartsfield airport was re-named the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport to honor his service to the expansion of the airport, the city and its people." (
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William B. Hartsfield - "William Berry Hartsfield, Sr. (March 1, 1890 – February 22, 1971), was an American politician who served as the 49th and 51st Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. His tenure extended from 1937 to 1941 and again from 1942 to 1962, making him the longest-serving mayor of his native Atlanta, Georgia.
Hartsfield is credited with developing Atlanta's airport into a national aviation center and ensuring a good water supply with the completion of the Buford Dam. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is named in Hartsfield's honor as well as a later mayor, Maynard Jackson, who led the modernization of the airport in the 1970s.
Hartsfield was responsible for fostering Atlanta's image as "the city too busy to hate" during the civil rights struggles of the 1950s. In 1957, he won election to his last term as mayor by defeating the staunch segregationist and future Governor Lester Maddox.
Willie B., a gorilla that became a popular attraction at Zoo Atlanta for decades, was named for Hartsfield.
Hartsfield was a strong activist to permit unathletic children to play sports. Hartsfield received an honorary degree in Doctor of Laws from Oglethorpe University in 1961." (
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