George Weissinger Smith (1864–1931) was

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 ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

from 1917 to 1921. His maternal grandfather, George Weissinger, published the ''

Louisville Journal Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

'' (which became the ''

Courier-Journal ''The Courier-Journal'', also known as the ''Louisville Courier Journal'' (and informally ''The C-J'' or ''The Courier''), is the highest circulation newspaper in Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett and billed as "Part of the ''USA Today'' Ne ...

'') during the controversial tenure of

George D. Prentice George Dennison Prentice (December 18, 1802 – January 22, 1870) was an American newspaper editor, writer and poet who built the ''Louisville Journal'' into a major newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky, and the Ohio River Valley, in part by the vir ...

Life

George Smith graduated from

Louisville Male High School Louisville Male Traditional High School is a public co-ed secondary school serving students in grades 9 through 12 in the southside of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It is part of the Jefferson County Public School District. History Ninth and Ches ...

in 1883, from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

in 1886, and the

University of Louisville School of Law The University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, commonly referred to as The University of Louisville School of Law, U of L Brandeis School of Law, or the Brandeis School of Law, is the law school of the University of Louisville. E ...

in 1887. He practiced law throughout the rest of his life. He entered politics in 1898 with his election to the

Kentucky General Assembly The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in the ...

. Smith ran for mayor in 1917 on an anti-corruption platform. Louisville's dominant political boss for three decades,

John Henry Whallen John Henry Whallen (May 1, 1850 – December 3, 1913) was a Democratic Party political boss in Louisville, Kentucky during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in New Orleans, he moved with his family to Cincinnati, Ohio in his youth. As a ...

, had died in 1913 and his less charismatic brother was unable to use the party's political machine to defeat Smith. Smith followed through on election promises, shutting down

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

s and

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...

along the then-seedy Green Street. After the ''

Louisville Herald ''The Louisville Herald-Post'' was a newspaper that was published in Louisville, Kentucky. Origins ''The Herald-Post'' was created in 1925 from the merging of the old ''Louisville Herald'' and '' Louisville Post'' newspapers. Louisville financi ...

'' drummed up public interest with a naming contest, the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

-majority city council gave the street its modern name, Liberty Street, in 1918. He also ordered the Louisville Police Department to assist federal agents in enforcing

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

. The administration soon focused on the

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 ...

effort, with Smith himself involved in war bond drives.

Camp Zachary Taylor Camp Zachary Taylor was a military training camp in Louisville, Kentucky. It opened in 1917, to train soldiers for U.S. involvement in World War I, and was closed three years later. It was initially commanded by Guy Carleton and after the war it ...

, one of the largest training camps built for the war effort, was located at was then the edge of the city. The city grew 40 percent in size during his administration through the annexation of surrounding areas. After his term as mayor, he served as president of the

Louisville Water Company The Louisville Water Company is a water company based in Louisville, Kentucky. History The Louisville Water Company has been in operation since 1860. First known as "The Water Works", the company served water to 512 customers. Water delivery ...

until 1926. He lived on Cherokee Road with his family, and died in 1931 of a

cerebral hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

. He was buried in

Cave Hill Cemetery Cave Hill Cemetery is a Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of buria ...

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, George Weissinger 1864 births 1931 deaths Mayors of Louisville, Kentucky Burials at Cave Hill Cemetery Louisville Male High School alumni