Bios: Millard Winfield Atkins, Claiborne Parish, Louisiana
Submitted for the LAGenWeb Archives by Mike Miller, Apr. 2000


**********************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm
**********************************************



Millard Winfield Atkins, a retired resident at Shreveport is well known not
only in that city, but particularly in Claiborne Parish, where his business
life was spent and where he was known for man years as an extensive planter
and a leader in public affairs.

He was born at Athens, in Claiborne Parish, July 16, 1857, son of W. B. and
Martha (Atkins) Atkins, both natives of Giles County, Tennessee.  His father
was reared in Alabama, also lived in Mississippi for a time, and in 1844
established his home near Athens in Claiborne Parish, being one of the
pioneers and constructive factors in the development of that historic
community.  He acquired a large amount of land and negro slaves, and with
this labor he cleared and developed his plantation.  He became the father of
eight children, three of whom still survive:  Rebecca, now Mrs. John Walker,
of Arcadia;  William A., also a resident of Arcadia; and  Millard W.

Millard Winfield Atkins grew up on the plantation, and his chief business
from early youth has been planting and farming.  He still owns the home
place where he was born, a splendid property near Athens, on a model road
extending through the Parish, and also another plantation in the same
vicinity.  Those acquainted with agricultural conditions in Claiborne Parish
acknowledged him for some years as the largest and most prominent planter in
the parish.  Mr. Atkins has been retired from the personal supervision of
his plantation for the past live years, and has been a resident of
Shreveport since 1919, but will resume active management of plantation
interests.  During his residence in Shreveport Mr. Atkins was actively
engaged in the buying and selling of city property.

His participation in public affairs as an official and interested citizen
covered a period of about a quarter of a century.  He was a member of the
Town Council and mayor of Athens, member of the Parish School Board, member
of the parish police jury, and for four years represented that parish in the
State Legislature.

Mr. Atkins is a ruling elder in the Dunlap Memorial Presbyterian Church at
Shreveport.  His first wife was Miss Eva L. Knox, now deceased.  By this
union there are six living children, all of whom were liberally educated in
school and college, and Mr. Atkins has taken proper pride in what he was
able to do for his children as they were growing up.  These children are:
Dr. W. L. Atkins, a physician at Arcadia;  A. B. Atkins, lawyer at Homer;
Grover T. Atkins, farmer living near Athens;  Mrs. Lena Griffis, of
Rayville, Louisiana;  Mrs. A. H. Wallace, of Shreveport; and  Mrs. Lulu May
Rhodes, of Shreveport.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A History of Louisiana, (vol. 2), p. 37, by Henry E. Chambers.  Published by
The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, 1925.

#  #  #