Early Life
Marion L. Brittain was born in Wilkes County, Georgia in 1866 to Dr. J. M. Brittain, a Baptist minister, and Ida Callaway, granddaughter of Baptist minister Enoch Callaway. Brittain's childhood was spent in a variety of towns and cities throughout the state of Georgia due to his father's career as a minister. He attended Emory College for his undergraduate studies, graduating in 1886 with the commendation that he was the "best student in his department the college had had in ten years." Brittain then spent ten years as an administrator of several high schools in the Atlanta, Georgia area. In 1897, he gained local fame for his erudition after winning a contest held by the Atlanta Constitution in which he was able to identify the missing word from a passage taken from an obscure book on English literature. Brittain left his work as a high school administrator in 1898 to pursue graduate studies at the University of Chicago.
On December 5, 1899, Brittain and Lettie McDonald, daughter of Baptist minister Dr. Henry McDonald, were married. He returned to academic administration, first as superintendent of the Fulton County School System (1900–1910) and later, at the appointment of Joseph Mackey Brown, the education system for the entire state of Georgia (1910–1922). In this role, Brittain became well known for fighting corruption and generally improving the education system. Throughout this time, Brittain earned LL.D. degrees from Mercer University (1919), and, later, the University of Georgia (1927) and Emory University (1928). He was also president of the Georgia Education Association in 1906, of the Southern Education Association in 1913, and of the Council of State School Superintendents of the United States in 1917. He earned the wrath of Senator Tom Watson during these positions, who attempted to remove Brittain from his position as superintendent of education.
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