TABLE OF CONTENTS
Container List
Register of the
Martin and Palmer Families Papers
Presented online by the Digital Library of Georgia
Overview of Collection
Repository: Herndon Home
Creator: Martin family
Creator: Palmer family
Collection Number: martin-palmer
Title: Martin and Palmer families papers
Dates: 1904-1980
Quantity: 4.5 linear ft.
Abstract: Papers of the Martin and Palmer families of Atlanta, Georgia, from 1904-1980.
Biographical Note
The Martin-Palmer family has been one of the most prominent African American families in Atlanta since the turn of the twentieth century. Eugene Marcus Martin, whose career at Atlanta Life Insurance Company spanned fifty-seven years, was born October 17, 1888, in Atlanta, Georgia. Educated at Atlanta University, he graduated from the college department in 1912, at which time he began his career at Atlanta Life as an agent. Serving later as sick claim adjuster, manager, and auditor, he was elected secretary of Atlanta Life in 1920 and became First Vice President in 1947, serving until his death in 1969. Martin became a president of the National Negro Insurance Association and served as national vice president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and as a member of its board of directors.
On June 30, 1926, Eugene Martin married Helen White of another prominent Black family in the city. Helen was the daughter of George and Madeline White, early members of the First Congregational Church where the Martins also belonged and where Eugene Martin became principal of the Sunday school. Helen's brother was Walter White, who became secretary of the (NAACP). Eugene and Helen Martin had two daughters: Jean Martin DeLara and Rose Martin Palmer, who married James Dibble Palmer of Sumter, South Carolina. James Palmer served as Medical Director of Atlanta Life. The Palmers have one son, James. The Martin-Palmer family was among the closest associates of the Alonzo Herndon family. Eugene Martin died on October 28, 1969. His wife died on May 8, 1984.
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Scope and Content Note
The collection contains the papers of the Martin and Palmer families of Atlanta, Georgia, from 1904-1980. The bulk of the collection is comprised of photographs, many of which are important documents of an elite Black family at the turn of the century and other prominent Blacks such as Alonzo Herndon, Benjamin Davis, Raymond Pace Alexander, and William S. Tubman. Of particular note are the photographs of the parents of Eugene and Helen Martin, including an album of the George White family. Among the manuscripts are correspondence from Mrs. Channing Tobias, Jessie Herndon, and Edward T. Ware; and Atlanta University materials such as the scrapbooks of Madeline White and "The Open Door" pageant.
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Arrangement of the Collection
The collection is organized into ten groupings:
(4) First Congregational Church and Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity
(7) Publications and printed materials
(9) Journals, albums, and scrapbooks
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Topics Covered
| Martin, Eugene Marcus, 1888-1969. | |||||||||||||
| Martin, Helen, d. 1984. | |||||||||||||
| Atlanta Life Insurance Company. | |||||||||||||
| First Congregational Church (Atlanta, Ga.) | |||||||||||||
| Sigma Pi Phi. | |||||||||||||
| African American businesspeople--Georgia. | |||||||||||||
| African American women--Georgia. | |||||||||||||
| Insurance companies--Georgia. | |||||||||||||
| Atlanta (Ga.)--Social life and customs. | |||||||||||||
| Photographs. | |||||||||||||
| Scrapbooks. | |||||||||||||
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Administrative Information
Provenance:
Gift, Rose Martin Palmer.
Restrictions on Access:
Unrestricted access.
Restrictions on Use:
All requests subject to limitations noted in The Herndon Home policies on reproduction.
Preferred Citation Method:
[after identification of item(s)], Martin and Palmer families papers, The Herndon Home.
Processing Information:
Processed by Yinka Winfrey, Wesley Chenault, and Lamonica Sanford, 2003-2004.
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Related Material
Atlanta Life Insurance Company records, Auburn Avenue Research Library, Atlanta GA; Atlanta NAACP collection, Auburn Research Library, Atlanta GA; Jondelle Johnson collection, Auburn Avenue Research Library, Atlanta GA; Moorfield Storey collection (1847-1930), Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Washington DC; Moorfield Storey collection (1876-1929), Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Washington, DC; NAACP collection, Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Washington, DC; and Walter White papers, Schomberg Center, New York, New York.
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Separation List
Atlanta Life Insurance Company photographic collection, Herndon family collection, Herndon Foundation records, and Toomer family collection.
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Container List
| Ephemera | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Ephemera | |||||||||||
| Financial records | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Financial records | |||||||||||
| First Congregation Church and Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | First Congregational Church | |||||||||||
| 2 | First Congregational Church | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity | ||||||||||||
| Medical records | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Medical record of Martin, Eugene | |||||||||||
| Programs | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Atlanta University programs | |||||||||||
| 2 | Funeral programs | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Miscellaneous programs | ||||||||||||
| Real estate | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 8 | Blueprint of Magnolia and Walnut St., Fulton County, GA | |||||||||||
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587 University Place, N.W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314
404-581-9813