Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans Hall

What if a bottle of Coca-Cola could change your life? It practically did for Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans, the namesake of this very building, Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans Hall. Here at Georgia Tech, her legacy stands tall, a testament to a life intertwined with the iconic beverage and marked by remarkable generosity. Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans, born in Virginia in 1872, wasn’t initially destined for the world of business. Yet, fate intervened when her husband, Joseph Brown Whitehead, secured a contract to bottle Coca-Cola. They moved to Atlanta, becoming key players in the rise of the bubbly drink. Tragedy struck in 1906 when Joseph died, leaving Lettie, at just 34, to manage the burgeoning bottling empire. She proved a shrewd businesswoman, expanding the operation significantly. Lettie later married Arthur Kelly Evans, and in 1934, a pivotal moment occurred: she sold the bottling business back to Coca-Cola, becoming one of the first women on the board of directors of a major American corporation. Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans Hall isn’t just a name on a building. It represents a woman who understood the power of giving back. Guided by Robert W. Woodruff, then president of Coca-Cola, Lettie established three foundations. These foundations, still active today, have distributed millions to countless causes, particularly supporting women’s education and the arts. Emory University, Agnes Scott College, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts – all bear the mark of her generosity. Even across the Atlantic, during World War II, she contributed to the Queen’s Fund for air raid victims and supported the American Hospital in France. Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans lived a life that fizzed with entrepreneurial spirit and a deep commitment to philanthropy. Her story, deeply woven into the fabric of Atlanta, reminds us that success can be a catalyst for positive change.