William Townsend
William B Townsend
William Benjamin Townsend holds the distinction of being Dahlonega’s longest running and foremost newspaper editor.
Born in 1855 in Dahlonega, he would live here all his life as an active member of the community. The Dahlonega Nugget first started printing in 1890 and he continued running it as publisher, editor, and printer until his death in 1933 in his very own print shop.
Townsend also served his community in other ways, running for mayor and losing to Professor Elias Vickery in 1905. Townsend would more successfully become an ordinary for the town and gleefully tally the number of weddings he performed in the pages of his newspaper.
A compilation of his witty stories and jokes may be found written in Observations From a Peak in Lumpkin County, originally written in 1936 and more recently edited in 2011. The Nugget continues to be printed today, and is the only newspaper in Dahlonega.
W. B. Townsend; 12 Jul 1855 - 13 Jun 1923 (67)
Number 8 on Cemetery Map
This QR code is one of 10 placed about the cemetery, marked by colored posts for visibility. Each code you scan will give you a brief review of the person or subject by which the post is placed, and their significance to the community or to the cemetery itself. These also include photos of the individual at times. All are placed here by courtesy of the Dahlonega Cemetery Committee.
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Content by Delaney Waters for Appalachian Studies Center.
Posted 18 Apr 2023 by Manny Carvalho.