Mark Hartzog was a founding member of Hartzog & Silva. For more than forty-five years, Mark served as a compassionate, knowledgeable counselor to not only his many clients, but also to his law partners and fellow attorneys. He was well-known for his graciousness and his unquestionable integrity. Mark possessed a razor-sharp legal mind and an encyclopedic knowledge of the law, especially in the fields of real estate, estate planning, and estate administration. He was always willing to answer the questions of new attorneys with grace and kindness, and to help other members of the Middle Tennessee legal community. He possessed a quiet dignity and a sound moral compass. Mark was the epitome of the gentleman lawyer.  

Henry Martin “Mark” Hartzog was born in Dothan, Alabama. As a boy, Mark was both an athlete and a scholar. He attended Rhodes College in Memphis before receiving his undergraduate degree from Georgia Tech. After graduation, Mark enlisted in the Marine Corps. He flew in combat missions over Vietnam, serving as a navigator in F-4 Phantom jets, ultimately attaining the rank of Captain.

Following military service, Mark returned to Tennessee to attend the University of Tennessee College of Law, graduating in 1970. It was while he was a law student that Mark met his wife, Sylvia, to whom he was married for fifty years, until his passing.

Mark loved travelling the world with Syl and spending time with their children, Julie Garcia and Clay Hartzog, and their two grandchildren. Mark also took great joy in watching the variety of wildlife that came to eat from the numerous feeders in his and Syl’s backyard.  

Mark Hartzog improved and enriched the lives of all who worked with him. No lawyer has done more for the image or public perception of the legal profession than Mark Hartzog.