Pelham is a small southwest Georgia town with a rich history. Located in Mitchell County, just east of the Flint River, on the crossroads of U.S. Highway 19 and State Route 93, Pelham is approximately ten miles south of Camilla and thirty-seven miles south of Albany. The town was incorporated in 1881 and named in honor of Major John Pelham, who was killed during the Civil War (1861-65) at the Battle of Kelly’s Ford in Virginia in 1863.

Potter Stewart, pictured in 1976, served as a justice on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1959 until 1981. Courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division The New Georgia Encyclopedia does not hold the copyright for this media resource and can neither grant nor deny permission to republish or reproduce the image online or in print. All requests for permission to publish or reproduce the resource must be submitted to the rights holder.

Savannah State University, a historically Black institution, is the oldest Black public university in Georgia. On November 26, 1890, upon passage of the Second Morrill Land Grant Act, the Georgia General Assembly passed legislation to establish “in connection with the State University, and forming one of the departments thereof, a school for the education and training of colored students,” which would operate as a part of the University of Georgia.

This three-story building, constructed in 1995, is Eastman's tallest structure. It is the corporate office of Stuckey Timberland, a land and timber management business, founded in 1956 by W. S. Stuckey (1909-77), of Stuckey's candy fame. Photograph by Harold B. Haley The New Georgia Encyclopedia does not hold the copyright for this media resource and can neither grant nor deny permission to republish or reproduce the image online or in print.

SunTrust Banks, based in Atlanta, was the thirteenth largest bank in the United States before it merged with BB&T to become Truist Financial in 2019. From its beginning the bank earned a reputation as a trust for well-to-do clients, but it also played a crucial role in recapitalizing regional investment. The stability and growth of the bank, which maintained branches and affiliates in seven states and the District of Columbia, served as a measurement for the economic growth of the New South.