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Marble bust of Margaret Mitchell sculpted by Eleanor Platt located in the Georgia Hall of Fame at the state capitol.

Georgia author and journalist Margaret Mitchell was born on Nov. 8, 1900, in Atlanta, where she lived her entire life except for a brief two-year stay at Smith College (1918-19). After a failed marriage in 1922, she married John Marsh in 1925. Mitchell took a job with the Atlanta Journal as a feature writer for their Sunday Magazine. While she was admired by the people she worked with (Erskine Caldwell among them), a number of accidents, mostly car accidents, kept her out of work frequently. It was during one these respites, sitting at home with a broken ankle, that Mitchell began writing a historical novel set in Atlanta before, during, and after the Civil War. After finishing the novel, which she entitled "Tomorrow Is Another Day," she set the manuscript aside without even trying to sell it. Then, in 1935, an editor for the Macmillan Company "dug up"--in Mitchell's own words--the manuscript and was convinced it would be a bestseller. Mitchell spent several months rewriting and revising her work, with publication set for April 5, 1936. As word of this work spread, it soon became obvious that the original printing of 10,000 would not be sufficient, so the publication date was moved back, first to May 5, then to June 30. The Book-of-the-Month Club selected it as their July selection even before it was published. Finally, on June 30, 1936, Margaret Mitchell's epic historical novel was published, renamed Gone With the Wind. By December of that same year, total sales had already exceeded 1 million. In May 1937, Mitchell was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her epic novel. Since then, worldwide sales of Gone With the Wind have exceeded 30 million. It has been printed in 27 languages in 37 countries, with some 180 different editions. David O. Selznick purchased the film rights to the book within a month of its publication. By her own choice, Mitchell had no involvement in the filming of the movie, the popularity of which has equaled that of the book. The film premiered in Atlanta on December 15, 1939. While Mitchell was present for the premier, she was uncomfortable with all the media attention. But the success of her work meant she could no longer live as an average Atlanta housewife. She spent her time answering mail and trying to avoid curiosity seekers. She helped nurse her father and husband through years of invalidism, a task that prevented her from doing more writing.

On August 11, 1949, Mitchell was struck by a taxi while crossing a street three blocks from her home. She died from the injuries on August 16 and is buried in Atlanta's Oakland Cemetery. In 1986, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the release of her book, the U.S. Postal Service issued a Margaret Mitchell stamp.
 
 

Photo: Ed Jackson

 

© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia

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