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Walter
F. George State Historical Marker
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Located at Webster
County Courthouse, Preston
32.06611363, -84.53710319
(Text) WALTER
F. GEORGE 1878 - 1957
Walter F. George was born 1.5 miles north
in a sharecropper's cabin. George was a teacher near Preston, then a lawyer and
judge. From the Georgia Supreme Court he ran for the unexpired term of Senator
Thomas E. Watson in 1922. George served 34 years in the U.S. Senate and was member
of 12 committees and chaired five. He chaired the Senate Finance Committee and
guided legislation to finance W.W. II. As chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee
he pushed for lend-lease legislation that kept U.S. allies strong in W.W. II One
of Senator George's toughest re-election campaigns was in 1938. He had opposed
some of President Roosevelt's New Deal policies and F.D.R. strongly supported
his opponent Lawrence Camp. George defeated both Camp and Eugene Talmadge. Senator
George never forgot his rural roots and supported rural legislation such as REA
and TV/A. Throughout his career he returned to Preston and delivered speeches
at the courthouse. Senator George was appointed as special ambassador to NATO
by President Eisenhower after retiring from the senate in 1956.
152-5 GEORGIA HISTORIC MARKER
1983 | 
