The Way We Were: Hugh Connolly, a man who left a legacy of success

Few people contributed more to Augusta's successes over the past century than Hugh Connolly, who died May 8 at age 93.

A native of suburban Detroit, he came to Augusta as a commissioned Army officer, married into one of the town's oldest families and then began to master a variety of careers – journalism, the law, banking, real estate and development.

"For a young reporter seeking to understand Augusta business and industry, there was no better source of 'living history' than Hugh," said Damon Cline, former business editor of The Augusta Chronicle.

"His knowledge was encyclopedic, partly because he had a ringside seat to many major initiatives and developments from the 1960s to the 1990s, but also because he always stayed well informed.

"I can’t think of a more voracious consumer of news than Hugh. The library of his Cumming Road home was filled with stacks of newspaper and magazine clips, many of which had his handwritten notes and proofreading marks scribbled in the margins," Cline said. "As an attorney and former journalist, he was obsessed with accuracy, and he was annoyed when anyone – reporters especially – missed the mark."

Connolly was a reporter for The Augusta Chronicle in the early 1950s and perhaps its best at the time, regularly covering the presidential visits of Dwight Eisenhower, the growing military base, juvenile crime and mental health care.

Then he went to law school at the University of Georgia, graduating with honors and returning to Augusta to work. From there he branched into business, becoming vice president and then president and co-owner of Sherman and Hemstreet real estate. He would also hold a number of officer positions with Georgia Railroad Bank and later First Union.

He found success in all of them, displaying a low-key talent at getting things done to influence much of the Augusta we have today.

He helped preserve the Augusta Canal, the legacy of his wife Nancy's ancestor Henry Cumming.

"Hugh made sure the vision that Henry had for the canal and the City of Augusta would continue," said Dayton Sherrouse, executive director of the Augusta Canal, who called Connolly a "friend and mentor."

"Hugh was instrumental in getting the legislation drafted and passed by the General Assembly of Georgia so the canal would have a caretaker, and served on the board for many years," Sherrouse said.

People not only admired Hugh Connolly, they liked him.

"He was one of the best conversationalists I’ve ever met," said Cline.  "Smart. Witty. Well read. The kind of person who could captivate a dinner party with anecdotes about Jayne Mansfield when she lived at Fort Gordon, attending prep school with Daniel Ellsberg (of 'Pentagon Papers' fame), and forging bridge-building alliances with Augusta’s first Black mayor, Ed McIntyre."

Perhaps, Connolly's professional bridge-building and vision was best realized in creation of Augusta Tomorrow Inc., a partnership between the city and business community, which he founded in 1982 and served as president.

It was vital not only in improving depressed areas of town, but in opening development of Augusta's Savannah River riverfront.

When you're successful, others want you on their board, and Hugh Connolly was on a long list in Augusta.

He was a member of the National Science Center for Communication and Electronics Foundation, Inc., served on the Board of Directors for the Greater Arts Council, and the Shepeard Community Blood Center, Inc. He was president of Historic Augusta, Inc. and the Augusta Symphony League.

He was a founding board member of the Senior Citizens Council of Augusta-Richmond County, a trustee of the Gertrude Herbert Memorial Institute of Art, and a member of the Downtown Development Authority and chair of the Architectural and Site Selection Committee for the new downtown library. He served on numerous boards of St. Joseph Hospital and was on a number of boards at Church of the Good Shepherd.

He did all these things, but he did them modestly and warmly.

In a newspaper profile years ago, Connolly expressed surprise that people singled him out for credit when thought everyone had pitched in. Then he changed subject to someone else.

"Hugh can handle controversial situations about as well as anyone I've ever seen," said banker and civic leader H.M. "Monty" Osteen in the same profile. "I've seen him defuse certain explosive situations ... not afraid to use his vocabulary or his sense of humor."

Connolly once summed up his motivation to a newspaper reporter this way: "It's just a feeling that the community you live in, where you make your living and raise your children, is something that you ought to try to make a contribution, try to make it a little bit better when you leave than when you found it."

Bill Kirby has reported, photographed and commented on life in Augusta and Georgia for 45 years.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Hugh Connolly was a man with the plan that usually worked for Augusta