Theodore Carl Wills, Sr. (November 28, 1911 – November 6, 2003) was a labor leader, Fresno City Council Member from 1954 to 1987 and was the mayor of Fresno from 1969 to 1977. He is the father of MLB pitcher Ted C. Wills, Jr. The Ted C. Wills Community Center in Fresno is named in his honor.

Early life

Theodore Carl Wills, Sr. was born November 28, 1911 in Sanger, California to Alexander Wills and Katherine Andreas both Volga German immigrants from Russia. On December 31, 1932, Wills married Bertha Metzler. Their child, Ted C. Wills Jr. was born February 8, 1934.

Career

Starting as a mechanic at a local creamery, Wills worked into being a labor leader amongst the local unions and was elected to serve as secretary-treasurer for the Fresno Chapter of the Creamery Employees Association in 1936. In 1954, Wills was appointed to serve on the Fresno City Commission, the predecessor to the Fresno City Council. This would start his three decade role in city politics and policy for Fresno which would include civic and policy choices such as the construction of

Fulton Mall Fulton Street is a long east–west street in northern Brooklyn, New York City. This street begins at the intersection of Adams Street and Joralemon Street in Brooklyn Heights, and runs eastward to East New York and Cypress Hills. At the borde ...

and

Selland Arena Selland Arena is a multi-purpose arena built in 1966 that makes up part of a four-venue complex of the Fresno Convention and Entertainment Center in Fresno, California. It is named after former Fresno mayor Arthur L. Selland and has had over 1 ...

. Other policies that Wills supported were the suburban growth of Fresno to help spur post-World War II growth away from the central part of the city and north towards the

San Joaquin River The San Joaquin River (; es, Río San Joaquín) is the longest river of Central California. The long river starts in the high Sierra Nevada, and flows through the rich agricultural region of the northern San Joaquin Valley before reaching Suis ...

and Madera County. In 1969, Wills would become acting mayor after Mayor Floyd H. Hyde was appointed by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

to the be the Under Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Later that year he would stand and win his first term as mayor. In 1977, Wills would run for a third term as mayor however he lost the race by 117 votes to Dan Whitehurst. At the time the mayor sat on the city council, so Wills lost both the mayor race and his city council seat. Wills would run again a few years later and win to continue on the Fresno City Council. In 1987, Wills lost his District 1 seat to Craig Scharton.

Death

Ted C Wills Sr. died on November 6, 2003 from complications due to Alzheimer's disease.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, Ted C. California city council members Mayors of Fresno, California People from Sanger, California 1911 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American politicians Deaths from Alzheimer's disease