Dana Gillman "Buck" Rinehart (February 24, 1946 – February 18, 2015) was an American attorney who served as the 50th

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, from 1984 to 1992.

Biography

Rinehart was born in

Parkersburg, West Virginia Parkersburg is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, West Virginia, Wood County, West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Ohio River, Ohio and Little Kanawha River, Little Kanawha rivers, it is the state's fourth-largest city and ...

in 1946. Having served in the

United States Marine Corps Reserve The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. It is the largest command, by assigned pe ...

, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel, Rinehart attended The

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

in Columbus, earning a B.A. in Political Science. He later attended

Moritz College of Law The Michael E. Moritz College of Law is the professional graduate law school of the Ohio State University, a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1891, the school is located in Drinko Hall on the main campus of the ...

at The

, graduating

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

. Rinehart began his career as treasurer of

Franklin County, Ohio Franklin County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,323,807, making it the most populous county in Ohio. Most of its land area is taken up by its county seat, Columbus, the state capital and most ...

, from 1976-1984. As County Treasurer, he posted a sign at the county building listing the names of real-estate tax scofflaws, the "Dirty Dozen". After mounting a failed 1982 campaign for governor, Rinehart ran for mayor in 1983, to replace outgoing Republican mayor,

Tom Moody Thomas Masson Moody (born 2 October 1965) is a former Australian international cricketer and current Director of Cricket of Sri Lanka Cricket. He ended his long tenure with the Indian Premier League team Sunrisers Hyderabad in August 2022 and ...

(1972–1984). Rinehart narrowly won the election to become the 50th mayor of Columbus. He won re-election in 1987. His term of mayor was characterized by an intense effort to distance Columbus, Ohio from its cowtown reputation (New World Center, 1986; convention center/arena complex, 1987; acquiring St. Louis Cardinals NFL football team, 1988). In an April 2, 2013, article, the Columbus Dispatch described Rinehart's eight years as the city's mayor as "tumultuous." "No idea was too big, no plan too outrageous for Rinehart," the Dispatch reported. "During his administration, the city built a $28 million Downtown safety building, the Franklin County Solid Waste Authority was established, I-670 from Downtown to Port Columbus was completed, City Center mall was planned and built (and is now a downtown park), redevelopment of the Short North and Brewery District got under way, the Martin Luther King Center was developed, and retail and residential growth began at Easton." Rinehart's leadership lead to the annexation of the Polaris area and the successful development of Southern Delaware County. However, the Dispatch also said that Rinehart made "glaring mistakes." One example cited by the Dispatch was Rinehart taking a

wrecking ball A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a crane, that is used for demolishing large buildings. It was most commonly in use during the 1950s and 1960s. Several wrecking companies claim to have invented the wrecking ball. An e ...

to what was then the 120-year-old facade of the old

Ohio Penitentiary The Ohio Penitentiary, also known as the Ohio State Penitentiary, was a prison operated from 1834 to 1984 in downtown Columbus, Ohio, in what is now known as the Arena District. The state had built a small prison in Columbus in 1813, but as the ...

on Spring Street, only to learn later that the city didn’t have permission for demolition. After leaving office, Rinehart returned to practicing law at Rinehart, Rishel & Cuckler, Ltd, where his clients included powerful business interests. For example, a July 4, 2011, Cleveland.com article reported that Rinehart lobbied for the Ohio Independent Automobile Dealers Association. Rinehart died from pancreatic cancer on February 18, 2015.

References

External links

Buck Rinehart
at ''

Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations of ...

'' * An interview with former mayor of Columbus, Buck Rinehart (1984-1992). The interview was hosted by The Columbus Metropolitan Club. Published March 5, 2014, on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

; 51 minutes.
Rinehart, Rishel & Cuckler
The private law firm that Rinehart works as

Partner Partner, Partners, The Partner, or, The Partners may refer to: Books * ''The Partner'' (Grisham novel), by John Grisham, 1997 * ''The Partner'' (Jenaro Prieto novel), 1928 * ''The Partners'' (book), a 1983 book by James B. Stewart * ''Partner'' (m ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rinehart, Dana G. 1946 births 2015 deaths Mayors of Columbus, Ohio Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences alumni United States Marine Corps officers Ohio lawyers Ohio Republicans Politicians from Parkersburg, West Virginia Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers