Charles Norris Poulson (July 23, 1895 – September 25, 1982) was an American politician who represented
Southern California in public office at the local, state, and federal levels. He served as the 36th
Mayor of
Los Angeles,
California from 1953 to 1961, after having been a
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The Ass ...
man and then a member of the
United States Congress. He was a
Republican though the office of mayor is officially
nonpartisan.
Early life and career
Charles Norris Poulson was born in
Baker County, Oregon
Baker County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,668. The county seat and largest city is Baker City. The county was organized on September 22, 1862, when a portion of Wasco Co ...
. He was the son of Peter Skovo Poulson (1843-1928) who was an immigrant from
Denmark. Poulson attended
Oregon State University
Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...
in
Corvallis for two years before he wed Erna June Loennig on December 25, 1916. The couple arrived in Los Angeles in 1923. Poulson became a
certified public accountant
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United Sta ...
through correspondence classes and night school at
Southwestern Law School
Southwestern Law School is a Private university, private Law school in the United States, law school in Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and enrolls nearly 1,000 students. Its campus includes the Bulloc ...
, which at that time had a business school.
Political career
California State Assembly and U.S. Congress
In 1938, he was elected to the
56th District seat of the
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The Ass ...
. He won a congressional seat four years later. After losing the seat in the 1944 election, he returned to the
United States Congress following the 1946 elections, remaining there until his election as
mayor of Los Angeles. During his years as a congressman, Poulson helped lead California in its fight against
Arizona over
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. sta ...
water. At the time of his departure from Congress, he was the chairman of the
Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
Los Angeles mayor
Poulson's victory in the Los Angeles mayoral race came after a contentious battle in which his opponent, incumbent mayor
Fletcher Bowron
Fletcher Bowron (August 13, 1887 – September 11, 1968) was an American lawyer, judge, and politician. He was the 35th mayor of Los Angeles, California, from September 26, 1938, until June 30, 1953. He was at the time the city's longest-serving ...
, claimed that the ''
Los Angeles Times'' wanted to control city government and, by endorsing Poulson, would have a puppet in the mayor's office. Poulson, for his part, challenged Bowron's support for public housing, in particular a project in the area known as
Chavez Ravine
Chavez Ravine is a shallow L-shaped canyon in Los Angeles, California. It sits in a large promontory of hills north of downtown Los Angeles, next to Major League Baseball's Dodger Stadium. Chavez Ravine was named for Julian Chavez, a Los Angele ...
in
Elysian Park Heights (a site on which
Dodger Stadium would one day be built). With the support of the group
Citizens Against Socialist Housing (CASH) and drawing on the
anti-communist
Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when the United States and the ...
atmosphere of the time, Poulson promised to end support for such "un-American" housing projects and to fire city employees who were communists or who refused to answer questions about their political activities.
During his eight years as mayor, Los Angeles became the third largest city in the United States, with Poulson instrumental in leading the construction of the
Los Angeles International Airport and expanding the
Los Angeles Harbor. Most notably, he led the drive to lure baseball's
Brooklyn Dodgers
The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Califor ...
to Los Angeles. This led to what became known as the
Battle of Chavez Ravine
The Battle of Chavez Ravine refers to controversy surrounding government acquisition of land largely owned by Mexican-Americans in Los Angeles' Chavez Ravine. The efforts to repossess the land, which lasted approximately ten years (1951–1961), e ...
which resulted in the removal of Hispanic residents from land on which Dodger Stadium was later constructed. He helped integrate the city's fire and police departments and initiated a garbage recycling program that proved to be a factor in his defeat in 1961.
In 1958 and 1959, Paulson served as president of the
United States Conference of Mayors.
Perhaps the most memorable image of his mayoral career came on September 21, 1959, when he addressed Soviet premier
Nikita Khrushchev during a public ceremony. The comments came after Khrushchev had constantly touted Soviet superiority during his tour of the city by Poulson. Citing Khrushchev's phrase, "
We will bury you," Poulson responded, "You shall not bury us and we shall not bury you. We tell you in the friendliest terms possible we are planning no funerals, yours or our own." Poulson received over 3,600 letters following the incident, many of them praising him for his comments.
He lost a reelection campaign in 1961 to
Sam Yorty
Samuel William Yorty (October 1, 1909 – June 5, 1998) was an American radio host, attorney, and politician from Los Angeles, California. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives and the California State Assembly, ...
, partly due to having to explain the expenses incurred by the Dodgers' franchise shift. Efforts to blunt such criticism were limited due to a severe case of
laryngitis
Laryngitis is inflammation of the larynx (voice box). Symptoms often include a hoarse voice and may include fever, cough, pain in the front of the neck, and trouble swallowing. Typically, these last under two weeks.
Laryngitis is categorised ...
, which prevented him from responding to the invitation from local television personality
George Putnam to debate Yorty on his show. Poulson never recovered from the laryngitis and his campaign never recovered from the setback.
Following the defeat, Poulson briefly returned to accounting before moving to
La Jolla, California in 1962. He died in 1982.
''C. Norris Poulson''
(New York Times)
See also
* George P. Cronk, Poulson campaign manager in 1953
References
External links
*
Norris Poulson papers
Join California Norris Poulson
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poulson, C. Norris
1895 births
1982 deaths
American people of Danish descent
Oregon State University alumni
Southwestern Law School alumni
Mayors of Los Angeles
People from Baker County, Oregon
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California
20th-century American politicians
Presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors
Old Right (United States)
Republican Party members of the California State Assembly