Lawson Whitaker
Lawson Spires Whitaker III, a well-known Chattanooga photographer, passed away peacefully on February 6, 2023, after a brief illness. He was 73.
Lawson was preceded in death by his mother, Flowerree Patten Whitaker Oakes, and father, L. Spires Whitaker, Jr. MD.
He is survived by his daughter, Grace Anne Whitaker, of Asheville, NC; sister, Flowerree McDonough (Steve) of Chattanooga; brother, John Whitaker (Anne), Nashville; his aunt, Janet Mills Moon, Chattanooga; Grace’s mother, Betsy Donahue, of Asheville, and Grace’s sister, Rachel Sigler (Nickolas), Nashville; nieces and nephews, Litton Whitaker, Kathleen Osteen (Hugh), John Whitaker, Manker Galetovic, and Thompson Galetovic; as well as many Patten cousins.
A native of Chattanooga, Lawson was a graduate of The McCallie School, where he was a stand-out athlete in wrestling and football, and the University of the South: Sewanee, where he was a four-time conference wrestling champion. A member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity, he continued to be active with the university’s fraternity alumni advisory council.
Lawson said his interest in photography took off in Berkeley, Ca., in 1971 after photographing a Grateful Dead concert. He would later work for Chattanooga-based Olan Mills as a portrait photographer and document the evolving architecture of his hometown following the Aquarium’s opening in 1992. Lawson was comfortable with all forms of photography, but he especially liked cityscapes—the historic Market Street Bridge and the snakelike bends of the Tennessee River—as well as old buildings and new.
He was an avid cyclist—he once rode from Chattanooga to Toronto to visit his brother—and his rides up and down the mountains surrounding the city allowed him to see Chattanooga from above before his drone photography captured aerial views. Lawson photographed for corporations and local schools such as McCallie and Baylor. He also had an interest in the landscape and wildlife photography of the West and had exhibited his photos at the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia. He was active in the local chapter of the Professional Photographers of America.
Lawson was a deacon at First Presbyterian Church. He was generous about photographing church and family events, weddings, engagements, and Christmas gatherings. He told his siblings that family was most important to him, and the most precious moment of his life was the birth of his daughter Grace.
Visit www.heritagebattlefield.com to share condolences with the family.
Lawson’s Celebration of Life will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18, at First Presbyterian Church, 554 McCallie Ave. The family will receive friends and guests at the church beginning one hour before.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Presbyterian Church, 554 McCallie Ave., Chattanooga, Tn. 37402. Or, the Booth Western Art Museum, 501 Museum Drive, Cartersville, Ga., 30120, or to the charity of your choice.
Arrangements are by Heritage Funeral Home & Crematory, Battlefield Parkway.