George Franklin Woodliff was born in Athens, Georgia, on January 10, 1914. He was the son of George A. Woodliff of Georgia and Amelia (Beck) Woodliff of South Carolina. Woodliff attended the public schools in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, and he received bachelor of arts and bachelor of laws degrees from the University of Mississippi. Afterwards, he settled in Jackson where he joined the law firm of Henley, Jones, and Woodliff in 1939.

Woodliff was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives, serving from Hinds County between 1940 to 1942. He was a member of at least three House committees during that time: Eleemosynary Institutions, Insurance, and Municipalities. Woodliff resigned his House seat in 1942 in order to join the United States Navy. During World War II, Lieutenant Woodliff received the Purple Heart when he was wounded in the arm during the invasion of Hollandia, New Guinea.

Returning to Jackson after World War II, Woodliff married Ann Sullivan Morse, the daughter of William Eugene and Annie (Wilkinson) Morse. The Woodliffs had at least two children, including George Franklin Woodliff, Jr.

Woodliff was a member of the Mississippi Board of Bar Admissions in 1949 and 1950, and he served as a colonel on the staff of Mississippi governor Fielding Wright. He was appointed as a member of the Mississippi Insurance Commission in May of 1952. Woodliff remained a partner in the law firm of Henley, Jones, and Woodliff until 1958, when he joined the law firm of Heidelberg, Woodliff, Castle, and Franks. The name of this law firm had changed to Heidelberg, Woodliff, and Franks by 1962. Woodliff was still a member of that law firm in 1991.

This collection includes correspondence, legislative bills, publications, financial records, and newsclippings pertaining to George Franklin Woodliff, particularly regarding his service in the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1942.

Much of the correspondence from early 1942 concerns legislative matters. Woodliff received most of these letters from constituents soliciting support for various bills, and several of his responses to these letters are included. There is also a 1908 letter from Caldwell and Smith, a financial services firm of Memphis, Tennessee; a 1915 form letter soliciting subscriptions to the Confederate Veteran; and a 1946 letter that identifies neither the sender nor the recipient.

The legislative bills are primarily from the 1942 regular session of Mississippi House of Representatives. There are also several legislative bills from the 1942 regular session of the Mississippi Senate. Some of the legislation concerns the regulation of insurance rates, anti-pollution measures for rivers and streams, and the allocation of commissions received by the state tax collector.

The publications include two 1940 reports of the Recess Hospitalization Committee of the Mississippi House of Representatives. There is also a December 4, 1941, report from the United States Senate and a January 1942 bulletin published by the business school of Mississippi State College (now Mississippi State University).

The financial records include two undated receipts for general merchandise that was purchased in Jackson.

Of interest is a newsclipping of an April 17, 1939, section of the United States News.

1. Correspondence. 1908; 1915; 1942; 1946. 1 folder.
2. Legislative Bills. 1942; n.d. 1 folder.
3. Publications. 1940-1942. 1 folder.
4. Financial Records. n.d. 1 folder.
5. Newsclippings. 1939; n.d. 1 folder.