About

William T. Revill published the first issue of the Meriwether County Vindicator on December 5, 1872 as a weekly Democratic publication. Revill owned, edited, and published the newspaper until his death on May 9, 1904; after which, his son, Henry H. Revill, took over the paper. William Revill’s wife also edited the Vindicator alongside Henry Revill during the mid-1900s. With the exception of slightly altering the paper’s title to the Meriwether Vindicator on December 25, 1885, very little about the newspaper changed for over 70 years. William Revill was an educator and local politician in Greenville, Georgia that taught two future governors: William Yates Atkinson and Joseph M. Terrell. In 1894, William Revill took an anti-populist stance and supported Democrat William Atkinson over Populist-Democrat James K. Hines for Georgia Governor. In the 1900s, William Revill was appointed Keeper of Public State Legislature Buildings and Grounds by then Governor Terrell, and, at the same time, Revill was running for state representative. After his father’s death in 1904, Henry Revill was nominated to take William’s place in the State House, which he accepted. During this time, the Revills continued to own and operate the Meriwether Vindicator. Henry Revill had a notable physical altercation with Atlanta Journal editor James R. Gray in 1905, and the two men became editorial rivals. Revill was a friend of future President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the Vindicator was among the earliest southern newspapers to formally endorse Roosevelt for president. In 1942, after 70 years of Revill ownership, now Judge Henry H. Revill sold the Vindicator to R. K. Stovall. Today, the Meriwether Vindicator is owned by SmallTownPapers and continues to publish weekly as Meriwether County’s legal organ.