Irwin Townsend Hyatt

Irwin Townsend Hyatt, Jr. died Friday, September 15, 2023. The only child of Dr. I. T. Hyatt and Sophia Horne Hyatt, he was born December 14, 1935 at old Piedmont Hospital. Irwin attended R.L. Hope School where he was the Georgia Spelling Bee Champion. He graduated from the McCallie School in Chattanooga and Emory University, then served four years as a lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps.

After his discharge, Irwin studied East Asian Studies at Harvard University. While still in the PhD. program there, he was recruited by Emory University to develop and teach their first courses in Chinese and Japanese history. Irwin spent the next year studying in Taiwan with his family before returning to Emory. He taught in the history department and served as dean for faculty development for the next four decades. Known by scores of Emory students for his popular course "Heroes and Zeroes: WWII in the Pacific," he is remembered for his sense of humor, his wisdom, eloquence, and his deep affection for students, staff, and colleagues.

Irwin is survived by his wife Margaret, by his sons Townsend and Torrey, his daughter-in-law Emily Karr, and by his grandsons Pearce and Philip.