Wil Platt is a native of Charleston County, South Carolina. After completing his undergraduate degree with a major in history at Furman University, he earned the B.D. at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Having decided in seminary that his calling was to be a teacher in a field other than religion, he earned a master’s degree in history from Ohio University and the Ph.D. in British history from the University of Georgia.

He served as a member of the History Department of Mercer’s College of Liberal Arts for more than thirty years. From 1982 until 1998, Wil was Assistant or Associate Dean of the College. During this time, he also directed the College's study abroad programs. Since his retirement from the full-time faculty, in 2000, he has continued to teach part-time. From 2002-2005, he directed the Honors Program for undergraduates in the College of Liberal Arts, the Stetson School of Business and Economics and the Tift College of Education.

Wil has served as President of the Georgia Association of Historians and the Carolinas Symposium on British Studies. He has read papers at various professional meetings and has had reviews published in historical journals. He has contributed to the life of Vineville Baptist Church in Macon as a member of the history committee, as a deacon, as a Sunday School teacher and as a member of the brass ensemble.

       Wil has two children and four grandchildren.