Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890–1920
Biography of Mrs. Emma Thigpen Martin, 1863-1940
By Leslie Spencer, historian, Atlanta, Georgia
Vice-President, Georgia Woman Suffrage Association
Emma Thigpen Martin was born around 1863 in Mississippi, possibly near Pascagoula; her parents were Joseph Thigpen and Sally Cristers. She married Edward L. Martin, principal of Georgia-Alabama Business School. She died October 28, 1940 and is interred alongside of her husband Edward, who preceded her in death. They both are at rest in Atlanta's Crest Lawn Cemetery (formerly Crown Hill).
The Martins were residents of Macon, Georgia, where they owned a business school. Mr. Martin was the principal and proprietor; Mrs. Martin taught at the institution. Mrs. Martin was known for her abilities as an organizer and her abilities as a writer. In 1916, she was hand selected by John D. Walker, chairman of the Democratic National Finance Committee for Georgia, to organize the fund-raising efforts of the women of Georgia.
In addition to her talents as an organizer, Emma T. Martin was also known as a very capable writer. Her essays often appeared in national print. In 1914, as result of World War I, world cotton markets were impacted. Mrs. Martin, wrote an essay regarding the pending economic crisis; at the time she was chairman of Georgia Suffrage Association's "Buy Cotton Goods," Committee. In 1915, she was elected vice-president of the Georgia Woman Suffrage Association (and Mrs. Mary McClendon was re-elected president). Again in 1916, Mrs. Martin penned a poem "Then," which championed the cause of suffrage.
Mrs. Martin died in 1940 at her home in Atlanta, Georgia, she was approximately seventy-six years old at the time of her death. She is interred alongside of her husband Edward, in Atlanta's Crest Lawn Cemetery.
Sources:
Emma L. Martin, "Mrs. E. L. Martin, of Macon, Writes on Cotton Situation," The Atlanta Constitution, November 30, 1914.
"ANSWERS SUFFRAGE POEM: SENATOR BURNSIDE WRITES ANSWER IN VERSE," The Atlanta Constitution, July 18, 1916.
"MRS. MARTIN TO RAISE FUNDS FOR CAMPAIGN: NOTED WRITER WILL ORGANIZE," The Atlanta Constitution, September 29, 1916.
"SUFFRAGISTS OPPOSE DEATH OF DEFECTIVES: ENCOURAGEMENT FOR CHILD," The Atlanta Constitution, November 21, 1915.
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"Georgia Deaths, 1914–1927." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2007. "Georgia Deaths, 1914–1927" and "Georgia Deaths, 1930," images, FamilySearch. Georgia Department of Health and Vital Statistics, Atlanta, Georgia. https://search.ancestrylibrary.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?_phsrc=KCK8&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&gss=angs-g&new=1&rank=1&gsfn=emma%20thigpen&gsfn_x=NP_NN&gsln=martin&gsln_x=1&msypn__ftp=Atlanta,%20Fulton,%20Georgia,%20USA&msypn=18541&msbdy=1865&catbucket=rstp&MSAV=0&uidh=d24&msypn__ftp_x=1&msypn_x=1&pcat=ROOT_CATEGORY&h=1032305&dbid=2562&indiv=1&ml_rpos=1