---
title: "Who Is Atlanta Airport Named After? What ATL Stands For"
description: "Wikipedia and atlanta.com say Hartsfield-Jackson is named for two former Atlanta mayors, William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson Jr. ATL is the code."
url: "https://atlairportguide.com/guides/who-atlanta-airport-named-after-what-does-atl-stand/"
updated: "2026-11-15"
airport: "ATL"
type: "guide"
---

> Independent guide, not the official ATL website. All pages: https://atlairportguide.com/llms.txt

# Who Is Atlanta Airport Named After, and What Does ATL Stand For?

Wikipedia and atlanta.com say Hartsfield-Jackson is named for two former Atlanta mayors, William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson Jr. ATL is the code.

Published November 15, 2026

![The front of the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal at Atlanta airport seen from the curving entrance roadway.](https://atlairportguide.com/images/atl/intl-terminal-exterior-front-v5.webp)

International Terminal, ATL

Wikipedia and atlanta.com say the airport is named for two former Atlanta mayors, William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson Jr. ATL is the airport’s code, the three letters on your ticket and bag tag.

## Hartsfield came first, and Jackson was added later

| Name | Who | When the airport took the name |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Hartsfield | William B. Hartsfield, credited by atlanta.com with helping establish Atlanta as a major aviation hub | 1971. Wikipedia says the renaming came after Hartsfield’s death |
| Jackson | Maynard H. Jackson Jr., who oversaw major expansions and pushed for the modern international terminal, per atlanta.com | 2003. Citizen Daily Post says “Jackson” was added to the existing name |

ATL’s history page is a timeline and doesn’t cover the naming, so neither date comes from an airport page. The official name, per ATL’s fact sheet, is Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The fact sheet lists the code under “Airport Code” and doesn’t explain the letters.

## Where you’ll see the Jackson name

The International Terminal carries it in full: Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal. ATL’s history page dates the terminal’s opening to 2012. The International Park-Ride deck sits on Maynard H. Jackson Jr. Boulevard, according to ATL’s fact sheet.

Our [Terminal page](https://atlairportguide.com/terminals/terminal/) shows where the International Terminal sits. If you’re flying from it, our [airlines pages](https://atlairportguide.com/airlines/) say which airlines check in there. Our [flights page](https://atlairportguide.com/flights/) links each airline’s page with its check-in counters.

## Sources

- Our [Terminal page](https://atlairportguide.com/terminals/terminal/), [airlines pages](https://atlairportguide.com/airlines/) and [flights page](https://atlairportguide.com/flights/)
- ATL history page and fact sheet, published by Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Wikipedia, “Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport”
- Citizen Daily Post, “Did Atlanta airport change its name”
- atlanta.com, “Atlanta Airport Name Guide”