Bernard Francis Dickmann (September 7, 1888 in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

– December 9, 1971 in

Collins, Mississippi Collins is a city in Covington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,586 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Covington County. History From Williamsburg Depot to Collins Collins was originally incorporated as William ...

) was the 34th mayor of St. Louis from 1933 to 1941.

Biography

Dickmann started work at the age of 16, working for a lumber company in St. Louis. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he enlisted in the

Marine Corps Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

. His later business career was in real estate. He was active in the St. Louis Real Estate Exchange, serving on the board of directors, and serving as its president in 1931. In April 1933, Dickmann was elected Mayor of St. Louis. The United States was suffering from the effects of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, and

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

had just been elected president. Dickmann's election marked the first time in 24 years that a Democrat had been elected Mayor of St. Louis. It also marked the first time a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

was elected with the support of a formidable African American political organization: The Co-operative Civic Association led by Jordan Chambers. Dickmann kept black support by building a long-promised modern hospital for the black community, which Republican Mayor

Henry Kiel Henry W. Kiel (February 21, 1871 – November 26, 1942) was the 32nd Mayor of Saint Louis, serving from 1913 to 1925. Early life Henry W. Kiel's father was Henry F. Kiel, a well known contractor, who died in 1908. Henry F. Kiel also serve ...

had promised would be paid for by the $87 million 1923 bond issue. By fulfilling his promise, Dickmann helped transform St. Louis from majority Republican to majority Democrat. During Mayor Dickmann's administration, the city acquired and cleared the land along the riverfront that would become the

Gateway Arch National Park Gateway Arch National Park is an American national park located in St. Louis, Missouri, near the starting point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The memorial was established to commemorate: *the Louisiana Purchase and subsequent westward mov ...

(known as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial until 2018) and be developed with the

Gateway Arch The Gateway Arch is a monument in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a weighted catenary arch, it is the world's tallest arch and Missouri's tallest accessible building. Some sources conside ...

. During Mayor Dickmann's administration, the city also enacted a smoke ordinance and took steps to reduce the air pollution created by the extensive use of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

for home heating and industrial use in the city. In 1941, Dickmann sought a third term as mayor. He was defeated by Republican

William D. Becker William Dee Becker (October 23, 1876, in East St. Louis, Illinois – August 1, 1943, in St. Louis, Missouri) was the 35th mayor of St. Louis, from 1941 to 1943. Becker, the son of German immigrants, graduated from Harvard University and St. L ...

. Dickmann was a delegate to the

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

Constitutional Convention in 1943. In December 1943, he was appointed St. Louis Postmaster, a position he held until 1958. In 1949, while serving as Postmaster of St. Louis, Dickmann married Beulah Pat Herrington, the Postmistress of

Mount Olive, Mississippi Mount Olive is a town in Covington County, Mississippi, Covington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 895 at the 2020 census. History The town of Mount Olive was incorporated on May 18, 1900, making the town older than Magee, M ...

. In 1959, Mayor

Raymond Tucker Raymond Tucker (December 4, 1896November 23, 1970) was an American politician that served as the 38th mayor of St. Louis from 1953 until 1965. Personal life and early career Tucker was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and was a 1913 graduate of ...

appointed Dickmann as director of the city's newly established Department of Welfare, and he served in that position for two years. After completing his government service, Dickmann continued in the real estate business. He died in

on December 9, 1971, at the age of 83. The

Poplar Street Bridge The Congressman William L. Clay Sr. Bridge, formerly known as the Bernard F. Dickmann Bridge and popularly as the Poplar Street Bridge or PSB, completed in 1967, is a deck girder bridge across the Mississippi River between St. Louis, Missouri, ...

crossing the Mississippi River at St. Louis is named in his honor. Dickmann is interred in Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery in south St. Louis.

References

St. Louis Public Library
* "Negro Voters Turn Tide In St. Louis Election," ''St. Louis Argus'', April 7, 1933, 8. * Oral history interview David Grant by Barbara Woods June 2, 1979 WHMC box 552 f9 * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dickman, Bernard F. 1888 births 1971 deaths Mayors of St. Louis 20th-century American politicians