Henry G. Marsh (October 11, 1921 – May 11, 2011) was a Democratic politician from

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

who served as

Mayor of Saginaw This is a list of mayors of Saginaw, Michigan. City of East Saginaw 1859–1889 The City of East Saginaw was incorporated in 1859 and existed until it was consolidated with the City of Saginaw in 1889 (effective 1890). The City Charter was granted ...

, and was the first African-American to hold that office. Marsh was one of the first black mayors in the United States.

Early life

Marsh was born on October 11, 1921, in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

to Thomas and Saidye Marsh. He attended Camden Academy and Knoxville College before being drafted into the U.S. Army in 1942. Marsh served in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy, arriving at the Anzio Beachhead three days before Operation Shingle. Marsh was honorably discharged in December 1945. He then returned to Knoxville College, where he served as the president of the

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved int ...

fraternity and graduated in June 1947. Marsh married the former Ruth Eleanor Claytor on September 1, 1948, in Roanoke, Virginia. Following their marriage, Marsh transferred from law school at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

to the

Wayne State University Law School Wayne State University Law School (Wayne Law) is the law school of Wayne State University in Detroit. Wayne Law is located in Midtown, Detroit's Cultural Center. Founded in 1927, the law school offers juris doctor (J.D.), master of laws (LL.M.), ...

since Ruth was a student at the University of Detroit. They had three children: Thomas, Walter, and Terésa. Marsh graduated from law school in June 1950, and was admitted to the bar in January 1951, opening an office in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

where he practiced until moving to Saginaw.

Move to Saginaw

Marsh moved to Saginaw and opened a law office in April 1954. When he arrived, Saginaw was a segregated city where no black man had ever won elected office. Marsh became chairman of the now-extinct Human Rights Commission in 1958. A frequent contributor to ''

The Saginaw News ''The Saginaw News'' is a newspaper publication based in Saginaw, Michigan, owned by Booth Newspapers, a division of Advance Publications. Published on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays (along with a joint Tuesday edition with ''The Bay City Times'' ...

'', Marsh ran for and won a seat on the Saginaw City Council in 1961. Though tradition dictated that, as the highest vote-getter, Marsh would receive the title of mayor, he did not, believing that G. Stewart Francke, whom Marsh respected, should serve as mayor considering the difficulties facing the city. Marsh was elected mayor pro tempore in 1965.

Mayor of Saginaw

Marsh was the city's first African-American mayor. During a time when the

1967 Detroit riot The 1967 Detroit Riot, also known as the 12th Street Riot or Detroit Rebellion, was the bloodiest of the urban riots in the United States during the "Long, hot summer of 1967". Composed mainly of confrontations between Black residents and the De ...

threatened to spill north, Marsh was concerned about the threat of violence from both sides (racially and literally—he ordered that a drawbridge connecting the two sides of the city be raised to stem the flow of traffic from both sides). Marsh formed a committee of over 200 community leaders to discuss concerns facing the city, later calling it his most important accomplishment. He traveled to Washington, D.C., to convince the

United States Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Urb ...

and Vice President

Hubert H. Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American pharmacist and politician who served as the 38th vice president of the United States from 1965 to 1969. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Mi ...

that the city should be considered a

Model City A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

, part of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society. '' Look Magazine'' selected Saginaw as an All-American City and an

open housing Housing discrimination in the United States refers to the historical and current barriers, policies, and biases that prevent equitable access to housing. Housing discrimination became more pronounced after the abolition of slavery in 1865, typical ...

ordinance was passed during Marsh's tenure as mayor. He retired as the city's chief officer in 1969 to return to his law practice. Shortly after Marsh's retirement, the city council successfully petitioned to have the Interstate 675 bridge over the Saginaw River named in Marsh's honor.

After politics and retirement

Marsh was a co-founder of what was then called First State Bank, which was later acquired by

National Bank of Detroit The National Bank of Detroit (NBD), later renamed NBD Bank, was a bank that operated mostly in the Midwestern United States. Following its merger with First National Bank of Chicago, the bank was ultimately acquired and merged into Bank One, at w ...

, which in turn through other acquisitions and mergers is now part of

J.P. Morgan Chase Bank JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the w ...

. He also served as a member of numerous local organizations and commissions. He retired from his law practice in 2000.

Death

Marsh died of congestive heart failure at the Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center in Saginaw on May 11, 2011. His remains were cremated.

Legacy

In 2012, just over a year to the day that Marsh died, the Bridge Center for Racial Harmony posthumously presented its Spirit of the River Award to Marsh. The award is given annually to individuals who have had a significant impact on the region. Marsh's wife Ruth and son Michael accepted the award on his behalf. The Henry Marsh Institute for Public Policy was founded by a local business leader and friend of Marsh's, and graduated its first class in 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsh, Henry G. 1921 births 2011 deaths Mayors of Saginaw, Michigan Michigan city council members Politicians from Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville College alumni Wayne State University Law School alumni African-American mayors in Michigan Michigan Democrats United States Army personnel of World War II University of Michigan Law School alumni United States Army soldiers 20th-century African-American politicians 21st-century African-American politicians