Ernest "E.M." Maurice Hart

ERNEST MAURICE HART, 1914-2010

Ernest Maurice Hart was “ringside” when Charles Lindbergh landed his “Spirit of St. Louis” at Candler Field on October 11, 1927; more than 60 years later, he was still awed by the plane when he viewed it hanging from the ceiling of the Smithsonian. Originally a racetrack, Candler Field would have a great impact on the lives of College Park residents in general, but especially on Maurice Hart.

The Hart farm encompassed over a hundred acres of what would eventually become Hartsfield International Airport, but when Maurice was born, the land provided vegetables for some of Atlanta’s earliest grocery stores, along with bounty for the Farmer’s Market on Central Avenue. The only son and first child of Ernest E. and Jewell Lee Hart, Maurice was born September 14, 1914. Four sisters (Ruby, Ruth, Iris and Melba) would follow, all of whom looked up to “Brother.” He married Anne McDonald of East Point in 1939. Later, daughters Sandra, Rebecca and Deborah would grow up on stories of which legends are made…all of which could be proven.

Doug Davis and Beeler Blevins - two local pilots instrumental in the aviation movement of Atlanta and in the location of Hartsfield - were among his friends and mentors, eventually becoming customers. It was an exciting time in the city’s history, and Maurice seemed to be wherever the action was. In 1946, he flew over the Winecoff Hotel as firemen attempted to put out the fire that made history. After the Rural Electrification Administration established rural electric cooperatives, Maurice and his dad were among the first to install electric well pumps around Buckhead and the tonier sections of Atlanta.

A natural born salesman, his first “real” job required that he get up around 4 a.m., walk the two miles to the trolley line and ride downtown to the Highland Bakery, where he worked off and on for decades. Starting out in a horse-drawn wagon, he delivered bread to legendary Journal/Constitution Publisher & Editor Ralph McGill, and other Atlanta notables. He would go on to sell everything from silverware (door-to-door) to chewing gum and auto parts. Winning prizes for top sales in whatever business he engaged, Hart went to work for Big K stores in Nashville when there were only two stores. He supplied the parts for and opened every auto department of every store; by the time Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton purchased the chain, it had grown to 119 stores. Walton flew Maurice to his hometown, had lunch with him and his associate and offered him a job with his fledgling company. Walton drove up in an old pick-up truck and then “borrowed fifty cents” from the associate to purchase a cigar, explaining that he just didn’t carry cash around.

A race fan all of his adult life, Maurice traveled “the circuit” and personally knew many of the legendary drivers, whose careers spun off the transport of moonshine. One of those routes seemed to be right up West Fayetteville Road, where the Hart home stood until the fifth runway took the last of the original land. The Hart Cemetery and Flat Rock Cemetery remain (within the airport land), where many ancestors are buried.

Maurice married Savannah Wallace in 1959; they built a home on family land, across the street from his mother. Married to Frances Chambliss in 1984, the couple remained in that house until 1991, when they moved to Fayetteville and continued to run the E. M. Hart Well Pump Company until her death in 1998. Frances was the “soul mate” with whom he enjoyed life; he formally gave his life to Christ and was baptized at College Park Presbyterian Church, where they were members.

Maurice “retired” (for the last time) at age 88, only because of problems with vision that impaired his ability to drive to customer’s homes to repair and install well pumps. With a customer database of over 3,000 by 1998, some of them had been with him decades; Peachtree City founder Joel Cowan, Post Properties CEO John Williams and boxing champion Evander Holyfield were among his clients. During the last few years of his life, Alzheimer’s dealt a blow to Maurice’s newer memories, but he held onto College Park and stories of a bygone era until recently.

On October 9th, 2010, Maurice passed away due to complications resulting from pneumonia. He is survived by sisters Iris Jones (Jasper) of Fayetteville; Melba Dailey (Lawrence) of Fayetteville; daughters Sandra Hart (Peachtree City); Rebecca Hart of Molena; Deborah Hart Belyeu (Barry) of Palmetto; grandchildren Zane Bailey (LaGrange); Kathryn (Kate) Bailey of Decatur; and Lara Bailey of San Diego, CA.; stepson Fred (Deborah) Chambliss of Knoxville, TN (children, Lauren and Michael); and stepdaughter Cheryl (Greg) Ippolito (sons Trey and Derrick King) of Nashville, TN.; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, October 13, 2010 at 1:00pm in the chapel at Carmichael-Hemperley Funeral Home in Peachtree City, GA. The interment will follow at College Park Cemetery in College Park, GA. The visitation will be held on Tuesday, October 12, 2010 from 5:00pm-8:00pm at the funeral home.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association at www.BGEA.org or to the Atlanta Union Mission at P O Box 1807, Atlanta, GA 30301-9904, in his memory.