Stolen Lives: Part One of the Georgia Tann Files

During the 1930s and 1940s, Georgia Tann placed so many children up for adoption, that researchers and historians are still debating on the exact number. The eventual state investigation into Tann’s crimes found that during this time, she had neglected to follow medical advice regarding her children, resulting in the premature death of many. Tann also allegedly destroyed important adoption documents and paperwork which to this day has made it more difficult for the families of these lost children to find answers. My family is counted in this unfortunate group. In 2008, I discovered that my husband’s grandmother was pulled into the dark world of Georgia Tann in the 1940s. I have been working for years to find answers to this family mystery as well as the final resting place of our lost family member - a baby boy who never got to grow up and experience life, possibly due to the misdeeds of Tann. We are just one of many families who seek answers to this and other mysteries surrounding the woman now believed to be a human trafficker.

Who Was Georgia Tann?

By the 1940s, Memphis resident Georgia Tann was synonymous with adoption. After having successfully taken over as executive of the Tennessee Children’s Home, Tann found child-seeking families as far away as New York and California. When the demand for adoptions outweighed the supply, Tann allegedly began to seek out children through very unscrupulous methods. Documented stories include Tann and her “scouts” snatching children from poor families she had deemed unfit. Tann had many co-conspirators, but also those who knew but said nothing. The culpability is wide and far-reaching. This blog and podcast will look into not only Tann but the ones who allowed this human trafficking to continue for decades.

Tann grew up in Hickory, Mississippi. She was a smart, accomplished young woman from an affluent family. She obtained a degree in music from Martha Washington College in 1913 and after taking college courses at Columbia, passed the Mississippi bar exam. After being rejected as a lawyer due to her gender, Tann began working for the Mississippi Department of Human Services. It was here that her story’s trajectory took a dramatic turn, as she began to passionately gain more and more interest in the foster care system and adoption (Tennessee State Library, 1950).

After spending a number of years removing neglected and abused children from homes in Mississippi, Tann had learned how the system worked - and she worked it well. Eventually, however, the Mississippi officials grew weary of her extreme tactics - so in the early 1920s Tann moved to Memphis, Tennessee. She was offered a job as the executive secretary of the Memphis Chapter of the Tennessee Children’s Home. It was then that she began to rub elbows with important and affluent Memphis residents - all who probably admired the motherly-looking Tann and her passion for helping underprivileged children. Eventually, she counted Judge Camille Kelley as one of her closest confidants (Tennessee State Library, 1950).

What people did not know at the time, was that Tann had not only developed a knack for working the system - but also ran quite a lucrative, yet ethically corrupt business. She lived lavishly and used her wealth to gain influence and prestige. Most likely, Tann began by taking children from families she believed didn't deserve them due to abuse and neglect - and placing them in what she deemed to be more suitable homes. Eventually, the number of parents seeking children from Tann grew to the point where more devious tactics allegedly took place. Eventually, she would count Hollywood stars and more as her notable clientele.

In the coming blog posts, we will dissect some of the biggest mysteries and greatest misconceptions of the Tennessee Children’s Home and the infamous Georgia Tann.

Works Cited:

Tennessee State Library and Archives. (n.d.). Georgia Tann/Tennessee Children's home society investigation scrapbooks, 1950. ArchiveGrid : Georgia Tann/Tennessee Children's Home Society Investigation Scrapbooks, 1950. Retrieved February 2, 2023, from https://researchworks.oclc.org/archivegrid/collection/data/1003644091