Hancock Co. civil rights leader remembered

Published 11:04 am Sunday, January 11, 2026

During his life, the late Marion Warren was never afraid to speak up, loud and clear about the need for African-Americans to register and vote in local, state and federal elections.

For decades, Warren, who lived in Hancock County, pushed for changes to take place to improve the lives of Black people in poverty-stricken areas of Hancock County.

He also advocated for Black people to seek public offices.

Warren died Oct. 20, 2025, but his memory lives on through friends who knew him, respected him and loved him.

Four of those friends lauded Warren as their mentor during a tribute given to him during the Jan. 1 Emancipation Day service held in Milledgeville.  The event marked the anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by Pres. Abraham Lincoln that freed slaves back in 1863.

“They say that all good things come from Hancock County,” Hancock County Commission chairman Adrian Ingram said, as laughter echoed inside the walls of the sanctuary of Wesley Chapel AME Church. “If you knew him, I would say to know him was to love him. But to know him was to respect him. He was a man who was not short on opinions. He was not someone who would not share exactly what was on his mind in that moment regardless of you were or what position you held. He was big about speaking truth.”

Ingram said he was thankful that Warren was part of his life.

“I could call him and he was going to give me all the information and history of why something wasn’t the way it was and he was a historian,” Ingram said. “He knew the facts and he was willing to share that with anyone who was willing to sit down and listen.”

Ingram said that because of Warren, Sparta and Hancock County are better as a community because he was such a big part of it for so many years.

“Mr. Marion Warren was, as already has been said, a great leader,” Baldwin County Commissioner Emily Davis said. “We still to remember some of the things he did over the years for us as a race.”

Davis described Warren as a great leader.

Baldwin County NAACP President Cindy Ward-Edwards also spoke about Warren.

“To know him was to know him, whether you loved him or not,” Ward-Edwards said. “You had to respect him. He was a true freedom fighter. When I would call him and ask him one question, we would stay on the phone three hours because I was going to get a detailed answer.”

She recalled that Warren would call her and say, ‘This is Ironside,’ referring to the hit television show from the 1970s starring actor Raymond Burr who used a wheelchair like Warren did.

“There was no one like him in Baldwin County or Hancock County and surrounding counties,” Ward-Edwards said. “He worked a lot with different organizations. He always had his black card, but he always knew when to use whichever black card he needed to use. Sometimes you have to go through doors using different black cards, but the card was still black, amen.”

Greene County Democratic Committee Chairwoman Annie Grant was the last of the locals to remember Warren.

Grant said she learned a lot of things from Warren.

“He would call me and say, ‘Hey Greene County, what you doing up there,’” Grant recalled. “‘And what you got going on?’”

Warren would want to know how he could help and what she needed.

“He said first of all, let me tell you something, don’t bow yourself down to those people on that lake,” Grant said. “Marion taught me that. He said, ‘You stand up because you’re a Black female. You stand up because they’re going to try to take everything away from you.’”

She pointed out that such had happened.

“But you know what, it didn’t harm me and it didn’t hurt,” Grant said. “The thing in my heart is I made three trips down to see Mr. Warren during the two months period before his death. I was with Marion on his front porch five days before he passed. And he said, ‘Annie, I’m planning on getting that truck fixed right there.’”

By that time, both of his legs had been amputated.

“But he never pitied himself,” Grant said. “He was just always talking about things in the future and things you’ve got to do. Take somebody with you. Don’t do it alone. Take that wisdom that you have and teach it to someone else. So many lessons this man had.”