Margaret Hitt

Family-Placed Death Notice

MRS. EDWARD G. HITT, JR. Mrs. Edward (?Ned") Greenway Hitt, Jr., the former Margaret Peavy, died July 30, 2003 at the age of 81. The family will receive friends from 4 pm to 6 pm Sunday at Spring Hill. Funeral services will be held Monday, August 4, 2003 at 11 AM at H.M. Patterson & Son, Spring Hill Chapel with The Reverend Dr. John C. Bryan of The Georgia Baptist Convention and Dr. George B. Wirth of First Presbyterian Church officiating. Burial will be at Oakland Cemetery. An Atlanta resident for over 60 years, Mrs. Hitt was a former City Room general assignment reporter , columnist and feature writer for The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution. During her junior and senior high school days, she worked every summer (without pay) as a copy girl for The Georgian Newspaper. Her mother, the late Mrs. G.M. (?Kitty") Poole, was one of the first woman reporters for this Hearst owned newspaper; and after it's demise, she wrote for The Atlanta Journal. Mrs. Hitts' uncle and Macon, Georgia native, the late Arthur Peavy, was a reporter for the Miami Herald. During Word War II, Mrs. Hitt wrote a daily column for The Journal about the military exploits of Atlantans and Georgians in the armed forces. She interviewed Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt when the late Presidents' funeral train stopped at the old Terminal Station here. Thousands lined the clay banks singing hymns in tribute to Roosevelt, according to her article. Until the end of World War II, with few exceptions, Mrs. Hitt volunteered her time every Saturday checking baggage for transit servicemen at The Terminal's USO Lounge. After World War II, Mrs. Hitt wrote the society column, "Peachtree Parade" for The Journal and later a society column for The Constitution. The brief time she resided in Miami she was a public relations counselor and publicity agent for various Florida and national concerns. Upon her return to Atlanta, she was the assistant director of Public Relations for Rich's downtown store before resuming her newspaper career. A 1939 graduate of Washington Seminary in Atlanta, Mrs. Hitt attended Louisiana State University where she was a member of Pi Beta Phi national sorority. Mrs. Hitt was secretary of the 1941-42 Atlanta Debutante Club and wrote a daily column, "Debs Daily Doings By One of Them" anonymously for The Journal. Because of the scheduling problems associated with America's entry in the world conflict, the normal party season was extended to more than 9 months for this club. Army and Navy officers from over the state of Georgia were invited to attend the numerous formal dances and other parties for the group. At her debut party, an afternoon reception at The Piedmont Driving Club, she carried a bouquet of orchids given to her by Margaret Mitchell, author of "Gone With the Wind." A member of The Atlanta Town Committee of The National Society of Colonial Dames of America, Mrs. Hitt also was a member of The First Presbyterian Church. Other memberships include The Henrietta Egletson Hospital Auxiliary, Historic Oakland Cemetery, The High Museum of Art, The Atlanta and Georgia Historical Societies and The Military and Hospitallier Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem. She was a former president of The Wood Valley Garden Club. Survivors include her half-sister, Mrs. Suzanne Peavy Holly Walbert, of Roswell, her half-niece, Katherine Poole, of Woodstock, several half-nieces and nephews and numerous cousins. Contributions may be made to Historic Oakland Foundation, 248 Oakland Avenue, S.E., Atlanta, Georgia 30312. Online memorials may be posted at www.mem.com. Arrangements by H.M. Patterson & Son Spring Hill. 1020 Spring Street, N.W. Atlanta, Georgia 30309, (404) 876-1022.