His honor, the saloonkeeper

Following the granting of an official charter by the State of Georgia, the City of Atlanta was obligated to elect a city government. If the number of fistfights that broke out in the city are any indication, Atlantans apparently felt very passionate about the person who should hold the title of Atlanta’s first mayor. The election was held at Thomas Kile’s grocery store, which was built on the 5-Points lot in downtown Atlanta currently occupied by the William Oliver building. Two hundred and fifteen voters turned out to help choose the first official leader of the city, and you probably won’t be surprised to learn that the winner of the election was the owner of a popular Decatur Street saloon. As they say, all’s fair in love, war and politics. The details of the rowdy crowd that set the city on a questionable path can be found in this week’s Stories of Atlanta.