Georgia Historical Society

On August 17, 1915, Leo M. Frank, the Jewish superintendent of the National Pencil Company in Atlanta, was lynched for the murder of thirteen-year-old Mary Phagan, a factory employee.  A highly controversial trial fueled by societal tensions and anti-Semitism resulted in a guilty verdict in 1913.  After Governor John M. Slaton commuted his sentence from death to life in prison, Frank was kidnapped from the state prison in Milledgeville and taken to Phagan’s hometown of Marietta where he was lynched before a local crowd.  Without addressing Frank's guilt or innocence, and in recognition of the state’s failure to either protect him or bring his killers to justice, the State of Georgia granted Frank a posthumous pardon in 1986.  

PBS will air a new documentary on the Frank lynching this fall, The People v. Leo Frank, and with the centennial of the events of 1913-1915 fast approaching, GHS has assembled a stellar panel for a timely and important discussion about one of the most controversial and darkest chapters in Georgia and American history.  We'll examine the key role of leadership played by Georgia Governor John Slaton and others involved in the case, as  well as the ongoing legacy of the Frank lynching and the continuing controversy surrounding Frank's guilt and 1986 pardon.

For directions to Georgia Public Broadcasting, click here .

Host Committee

(in progress)

Honorary Co-Chairs

Honorable Kathleen Ashe
Honorable Vincent Fort
Honorable John Lewis

Honorable Sam Nunn
Honorable Michael Thurmond

Benefactors

Mr. and Mrs. James H. Blanchard
Mr. and Mrs. Bradley Hale
Mr. and Mrs. Bill Jones III

Chairs

Honorable and Mrs. Roy Barnes

Mr. and Mrs. Robert L. Brown, Jr.

Mr. and Mrs. Don Kole
Mr. and Mrs. John F. McMullan 

Mr. and Mrs. Barry Phillips
Mr. and Mrs. John A. Wallace

Host Committee Members

Mr. and Mrs. Earl P. Cook
Honorable and Mrs. David H. Gambrell
Mr. and Mrs. John Helmken II
Honorable Willis B. Hunt, Jr. and Mrs. Ursula Hunt
Mr. and Mrs. Phil Jacobs
Mr. and Mrs. Mark Smith
Mr. and Mrs. Frank O. Walsh, III

In Cooperation With

Georgia Public Broadcasting
Anti-Defamation League
The Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum