George M. Sullivan

George M. Sullivan (born c.1922) was Mayor of Anchorage from 1967-1982.

Biography

His father was Harvey Sullivan, a U.S. District Marshal who had followed the Chilkoot Trail in 1898 to join the Klondike Gold Rush. Harvey Sullivan met Viola Murray (who would become George's mother) in Valdez, where she was serving as Postmaster.

George Sullivan grew up in Valdez. His mother was elected mayor about 1934. The summer of 1937, he lied about his age in order to obtain a job at the Kennecott Mines; he was only 15, and the minimum age was 16.

He graduated from Valdez High School, and went on to join the Army during World War II and serve in the Aleutian Islands.

After the war, he lived in Nenana and worked as a Deputy Marshall. He married Margaret Eagan Sullivan, the youngest daughter of Daniel and Isabelle Eagan of Fairbanks. Together, they were to have 9 children, including Anchorage Assemblyman Dan Sullivan.

In 1952, the family moved to Fairbanks, where Sullivan was elected to the City Council and became active in the Republican Party. In 1959, the family moved to Anchorage.

In 1964, Sullivan was appointed to the Alaska House of Representatives to fill a vacancy created by the appointment of Representative William H. Sanders to the Superior Court. In 1965 he was elected to the Anchorage City Council, and in 1967, he was elected Mayor of Anchorage, a position he would hold until 1982.

In 1976, he vetoed an anti-discrimination bill extending protection to sexual orientation. This became a campaign issue in the 1978 mayoral race, where he successfully defended his seat against challenger Dave Rose.

In 1979, he invited Pope John Paul II to visit Anchorage, and on February 26, 1981, the pope made a historic visit to the city.

Toward the end of the 1970s, he proposed what he called "Project 80s," a campaign of beautification and preservation of historic sites.

After his long term as mayor, he served as the senior vice president of Western Airlines.

The Sullivan Arena in Anchorage, constructed 1983, was named in his honor.

References

* [http://www.state.ak.us/drb/pers/pers-sullivan.shtml Biography from State of Alaska Public Employees Retirement System]
* [http://uaf-db.uaf.edu/Jukebox/WRST/71201.html Interview with George Sullivan (audio)]
* [http://schapira.blogspot.com/2006_05_01_schapira_archive.html Recollection of 1978 mayoral race]