Asa Griggs Candler

Asa Griggs Candler was born on December 30, 1851, in Villa Rica, Georgia. His parents were Martha and Samuel Charles Candler, a merchant and property owner. His parents raised eleven children, including Asa and his brother Warren Akin Candler. Samuel Charles Candler was a member of the legislature of South Carolina, and fought in the Creek War of 1836.

Candler's children are:

Asa's oldest son, Charles Howard Candler (1878–1957), was chairman of the board of trustees of Emory University. His family estate was Callanwolde on Briarcliff Road in Druid Hills; it has been adapted for use as a fine arts center.

The second son, Asa G. Candler Jr. (1880–1953), eccentric, alcoholic, and depressed, became a real-estate developer, opening the Briarcliff Hotel. His Briarcliff mansion and estate—also on Briarcliff Road in Druid Hills—was adapted for use as an alcoholism rehab center, then a psychiatric hospital. It is now owned by Emory University and used as its Briarcliff campus. Asa Jr.'s menagerie of animals enabled a major expansion of Zoo Atlanta in the 1930s. From 1930 to 1952, in front of the scenes or behind them, Asa was responsible for reshaping Westview Cemetery and building its massive Spanish Plateresque abbey.

Only daughter Lucy (1882–1962) married Henry Heinz, a banker and Kiwanis president. He was shot by a burglar in their mansion, Rainbow Terrace, in 1943. Rumors persisted that a relative murdered him. The widowed Lucy Candler Heinz later married cellist and conductor Enrico Leide. He founded a forerunner of the present Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

Third son Walter T. Candler (1885–1967) was a businessman, philanthropist, and horse sportsman. His Lullwater House and estate has been adapted for use as the residence of the Emory University President. Another portion is a park, and other land is the site of a Veterans Administration complex in Druid Hills. Walter T. Candler had 2 sons and 3 daughters.

Youngest son William Candler (1890–1936), was the local financier of the Atlanta Biltmore Hotel and Biltmore Apartments. He was elected president of the Biltmore Corporation in February 1930, and was manager of the Biltmore Hotel. His mansion, named Rest Haven, is located on Springdale Road in Druid Hills.