 Lamartine Griffin Hardman Papers: Collection Summary
Collection DescriptionHistorical NoteDr. Lamartine Griffin Hardman was born April 14, 1856 in Harmony Grove, GA (now Commerce, GA). His father was both a physician and a minister, and Hardman followed in his father's footsteps by attending medical school at the Georgia Medical College in Augusta. He received further medical training at Bellevue Hospital in New York and also conducted post-graduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania Polyclinic Hospital, and the Guy Hospital in London. In 1899, Hardman and his brother William established the Hardman Sanatorium in Harmony Grove. Hardman achieved nationwide fame for his pursuit of the latest advances in medical science, especially his experiments in the new field of anesthesiology. Hardman was also a proponent of phrenology, the practice of measuring cranial features to predict mental traits. Phrenology was used throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to provide pseudoscientific defenses of white supremacy. Aside from medicine, Hardman also had an interest in agriculture and manufacturing. He established the Harmony Grove Cotton Mill in 1893 and began investing in farmland, eventually becoming one of the largest farmers in Georgia by 1900. He used scientific processes to develop new agricultural practices, which he shared with other farmers around Commerce. Hardman was elected to the Georgia General Assembly in 1902 as a representative from Jackson County. He served in the House of Representatives until 1907, when he was elected to the State Senate. In 1909 he returned to the Georgia House for a final term. During his time in the General Assembly, Hardman introduced bills to support agricultural education in public schools and establish the State Board of Health. Drawing on his upbringing as the son of a Baptist minister, Hardman was also an author of Georgia's 1907 prohibition law. Hardman launched two unsuccessful campaigns for governor—in 1914 and 1916—before finally being elected in 1926. In 1928 he defeated E. D. Rivers for re-election. As governor, Hardman attempted to apply "scientific" processes to the administration of the state, which included establishing the Allen Commission on Simplification and Coordination to reorganize the state's government. Hardman proposed initiating a nutritional study of north Georgia to address reported shortcomings in the average diet. However, he also applied what he believed were scientific processes to capital punishment, using phrenology and a belief that fingerprints could be used to predict mental ability and criminality to determine which condemned prisoners would be spared from the electric chair. Hardman left the governor's office in 1933. He returned to Commerce, where he lived with his wife Emma Wiley Griffin until his death on February 18, 1937. Scope and ContentHardman's papers document his political, business (including mills and agriculture), and medical careers and also include papers about his family. The papers include correspondence, legislative files, financial records of his businesses, and published materials. Common subjects include agriculture techniques and education, reorganization plans for the Georgia State Government, health care, and education. Organization and ArrangementThis collection is organized into 14 series: Series I. Harmony Grove Mill, Series II. Business, Series III. Political, Series IV. Legislative, Series V. Governor, Series VI. Medical, Series VII. Family, Series VIII. General, Series IX. Scrapbooks, Series X. Photographs, Series XI. Artifacts, Series XII. Maps and Architectural Drawings, Series XIII. Audiovisual Materials, and Series XIV. CLOSED. Administrative InformationConditions Governing AccessThis collection is open for research with the following exceptions: Series XIII: Though the series is open for research, reference copies of the audiovisual recordings are available upon request. Research requests will be filled as soon as possible and will be dependent upon the condition of the recordings. Series XIV. Books is closed. Preferred citationLamartine Griffin Hardman Papers, Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, University of Georgia Libraries, Athens, Georgia, 30602-1641. Conditions Governing UseLibrary acts as a "fair use" reproduction agent. Copyright InformationBefore material from collections at the Richard B. Russell Library may be quoted in print, or otherwise reproduced, in whole or in part, in any publication, permission must be obtained from (1) the owner of the physical property, and (2) the holder of the copyright. It is the particular responsibility of the researcher to obtain both sets of permissions. Persons wishing to quote from materials in the Russell Library collection should consult the Director. Reproduction of any item must contain a complete citation to the original. Finding Aid PublicationFinding Aid prepared by Adriane Hanson and Jordan Graham (student assistant), September 2016. Related Materials and SubjectsSubject TermsRelated Collections in this Repository
Richard B. Russell, Jr. Collection Richard B. Russell, Sr. Papers Related Collections in Other RepositoriesIvan Allen, Sr. Papers, Atlanta History Center | ||||||||||||||||||||||