Beloved 99-year-old author, former educator dies in Atlanta house fire

Share Add Us On Google Add as a preferred source on Google ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A house fire in Atlanta’s Collier Heights neighborhood Tuesday morning killed 99-year-old Phyllis Lawhorn, an educator, historian and author, neighbors and city officials said. Fire officials said the fire engulfed Lawhorn’s home and the second floor collapsed. Lawhorn did not survive. Fire investigators are still investigating the cause. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: ‘She was a good person’: 99-year-old woman killed in Atlanta house fire, officials say In the hours after the fire, a neighbor described what she saw. “The flame was high, high when we looked out the window,” said Keisha Propst, who lives next door. Book and city proclamation Lawhorn wrote a book on the history of Collier Heights in her 90s. The book is titled “Atlanta’s Collier Heights: Bending with the Wind.” Last year, Lawhorn signed copies of the book. In August 2025, the City of Atlanta also awarded her a proclamation for her impact on Atlanta. Councilmember Michael Julian Bond presented it to her. “Collier Heights is going to miss you, and thank you for your book, and all of the hard work that you put into writing the book,” neighbor Jennifer Walton said. “The wind is blowing now, Phyllis, and that’s part of the title of your book. We thank you for everything that you’ve done for this community, and you will never be forgotten.” Teaching career and community leader According to the City of Atlanta, in 1968, Lawhorn was one of the first African American teachers chosen to teach at North Fulton High School in Buckhead. The proclamation said the move was part of a U.S. Supreme Court decision to integrate Black and white faculty in Atlanta’s public schools. The proclamation said Lawhorn taught English and literature for 30 years in schools in Columbia, South Carolina, and in Atlanta at Archer High, Douglass High and North Fulton High. It said she also taught English and literature at Clark Atlanta University for 27 years. The city described Lawhorn as a bedrock leader in Collier Heights. “This is a community where we make a difference, and we’re world changers, and Phyllis Lawhorn was one of those people to help that take place,” said Walton. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens calls Collier Heights home. Governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms also grew up there. Other notable former residents of Collier Heights include Ralph D. Abernathy, Herman Russell, Martin Luther King Sr. and Asa Yancey Sr. The proclamation said Lawhorn built her house in Collier Heights in 1963. Collier Heights was one of the first neighborhoods in the U.S. after World War II built for and by African Americans, according to the city’s website. Collier Heights was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. Copyright 2026 WANF. All rights reserved.