Emma R. Gresham is a retired schoolteacher and former mayor of Keysville, Georgia. Gresham helped restore the government of Keysville in 1985, fifty years after it had been dismantled, disenfranchising a largely black community of their voting rights. Gresham became mayor in 1988, as the result of the first Municipal Election to be held in fifty-five years. As mayor, she achieved basic services for her community including indoor plumbing, which most of the residents did not have, sanitation pick-up, a library, fire protection, a health clinic, playground, streets named, city lights, the participating Certified Literacy Program, and a sewage grant. Gresham was an Essence Awards Honoree and was named one of the One Hundred Eckerd Women, which recognizes women with above excellent volunteer records in the United States.