Louie Welch
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Louie Welch (December 9, 1918 – January 27, 2008) was an American politician who served from 1964 to 1973 as the
mayor of Houston, Texas The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas. Until 2015, the term of the mayor was two years. Beginning with the tenure of Bob Lanier, the city charter imposed term limits on offi ...
.


Early life

Welch was born on December 9, 1918 in Lockney in Floyd County in
West Texas West Texas is a loosely defined region in the U.S. state of Texas, generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls, Abilene, and Del Rio. No consensus exists on the boundary betwee ...
. and grew up in Slaton. His father, Gilford Edgar Welch, was an automobile mechanic. His mother, the former Nora Shackleford, taught a Bible study at the
Church of Christ Church of Christ may refer to: Church groups * When used in the plural, a New Testament designation for local groups of people following the teachings of Jesus Christ: "...all the churches of Christ greet you", Romans 16:16. * The entire body of Ch ...
which the family attended. He was a member of his high school debate team and was the president of his senior class. Devoted to literature and poetry, he learned the passages that he quoted throughout his life. Memorizing these classic lines may also have contributed to his quick wit and brash one-liners. During his political career, Welch was known for his quick quips he used with the media. Sometimes this 'saltiness' got the diminutive man in trouble; more often than not it served its purpose: defusing the situation while making his point clear: he would stand up for what he believed was right. He studied in Abilene, Texas, at
Abilene Christian College Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a private Christian university in Abilene, Texas. It was founded in 1906 as ''Childers Classical Institute''. ACU is one of the largest private universities in the Southwestern United States and has one of th ...
, now Abilene Christian University, where he was a varsity
cheerleader Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...
and a member of Phi Delta Psi social club. In 1940, he received his
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in history. He was married on December 17, 1940 to his first wife, Iola Faye Cure, in a ceremony performed by Homer Hailey.


City Council

At the coaxing of fellow
Lions International The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, by Melvin Jones. It is now headquartere ...
members, Welch was elected to the Houston City Council and served four two-year terms from 1950 to 1952 and then 1956 to 1962.


Mayor

After losing three times in bids for mayor, he was elected in 1963. He served for five consecutive two-year terms (
Kathy Whitmire Kathryn Jean Whitmire (née Niederhofer; born August 15, 1946) is an American politician, businesswoman, and accountant best known as the first woman to serve as Mayor of Houston The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of t ...
was the only other mayor to do so). Houston grew immensely when Welch was mayor. In 1963, Houston's population reached over one million people, yet was then still considered a "small" city in the eyes of the national media. Under Welch, several events put Houston prominently on the U.S. and world maps, including the opening of the
Astrodome The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...
in 1965 and the
Houston Intercontinental Airport George Bush Intercontinental Airport is an international airport in Houston, Texas, United States, serving the Greater Houston metropolitan area. Located about north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 and Interstate 69/U.S. Highway 59 ...
in 1969.
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
at nearby Mission Control sent a man to the moon.
Lake Conroe Lake Conroe is a lake in Montgomery County, Texas, United States. Even though it is named Lake Conroe, only a small portion of the lake is in Conroe, Texas. Most of the lake is in unincorporated Montgomery County. The lake lies on the West For ...
and
Lake Livingston Lake Livingston is a reservoir located in the East Texas Piney Woods. Lake Livingston was built and is owned and operated by the Trinity River Authority (TRA) of Texas under contract with the City of Houston for water-supply purposes. The lake is ...
opened to provide water for Houston. Welch also closed forty inefficient sewage treatment plants, began cleaning up the
Houston Ship Channel The Houston Ship Channel, in Houston, Texas, is part of the Port of Houston, one of the busiest seaports in the world. The channel is the conduit for ocean-going vessels between Houston-area terminals and the Gulf of Mexico, and it serves an incr ...
, focused on bayou beautification; and began development of the downtown Civic Center, among other accomplishments. Welch was the first Houston mayor to win all precincts during one of his reelections, including predominantly
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
areas with which some claim he had trouble. By the time that Welch left office in 1973, Houston was within two years of supplanting
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 ...
to become the fifth largest city in the United States in 1975, and in the fall of 1980, the fourth.


Controversy

Welch was mayor in 1967 when two days of siege by the Houston police at predominantly black
Texas Southern University Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is one of the largest and most comprehensive historically black college or universities in the USA with nearly 10,000 ...
. A police officer was accidentally killed by another police officer. Many Texas Southern students were taken into custody. The events created a rift between the administration and many of Houston's African Americans. In 1968, Welch's last term was marred by controversy, being that his second mayoral bid was financed by questionable sources. It was rumored that his campaign was associated with organized crime with a handful of his cabinet coming under suspicion and indicted as a result of this link. Welch's reputation came under fire because of his friendships with well known crime leaders. In early 1985, Welch was a leader in the opposition to the extension of job protection rights to homosexuals employed by the city government. Welch came back that year to run against incumbent Mayor
Kathy Whitmire Kathryn Jean Whitmire (née Niederhofer; born August 15, 1946) is an American politician, businesswoman, and accountant best known as the first woman to serve as Mayor of Houston The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of t ...
, who had served since 1982, in the Houston Mayoral Elections. Some of his comments (namely his candid quote caught by a microphone on live television, suggesting that one way to curb the spread of HIV would be to "shoot the queers") upset the city's gay community. The
Houston GLBT Political Caucus The Houston LGBTQ+ Political Caucus (also officially known as the HLGBTQPC) is the South's oldest civil rights organization dedicated solely to the advancement of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights. It was founded in 1975, and is the ...
supported Whitmire, his opponent in the race. She went on to defeat him in that race, remaining the city's mayor until the early 1990s.


Organizations

Welch served as President of the
U.S. Conference of Mayors The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. The cities are each represented by their mayors or other chief elected officials. The organization was founded i ...
in 1972–73 and as Vice President of the
National League of Cities The National League of Cities (NLC) is an advocacy organization in the United States that represents the country's 19,495 cities, towns, and villages along with 49 state municipal leagues. Created in 1924, it has evolved into a leading membership ...
from 1970 until 1973. In 1973, Louie Welch decided not to run again. In 1974, he became President of the Houston Chamber of Commerce (now known as the
Greater Houston Partnership The Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) is the largest chamber of commerce in the Houston area. The Partnership is an economic development organization for the Greater Houston area. The mission of the Greater Houston Partnership is to make Houston o ...
). His company was Louie Welch & Associates.''Abilene Christian University Alumni Directory''. Abilene, Texas: ACU Press, 2009.


Death

Welch died at the age of 89 from
lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
on January 27, 2008 in his north Harris County residence.Former Houston Mayor Welch dies
," ''
KTRK-TV KTRK-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States, airing programming from the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios on Bissonnet Street ...
''
He was survived by his wife, Helen, five children, and seventeen grandchildren, four stepchildren and four step-grandchildren. His first wife, Iola Faye Cure, died in 1991.


Legacy

Louie Welch Middle School in
Fondren Southwest Brays Oaks, formerly known as Fondren Southwest, is an area in Southwest Houston, Texas, United States. The Brays Oaks Management District, also known as the Harris County Improvement District #5, governs the Brays Oaks area as well as other surro ...
,
Southwest Houston Southwest Houston is a region in Houston, Texas, United States. The area is considered to be from Texas State Highway 6, south of Westpark Tollway to north of U.S. Route 90. Many Section 8 (housing) complexes are located in Southwest Houston. Hu ...
is named after him.


References


External links

* Welch, Louie
Louie Welch Oral History
Houston Oral History Project, October 20, 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Welch, Louie 1918 births 2008 deaths People from Lockney, Texas Abilene Christian University alumni American members of the Churches of Christ Deaths from cancer in Texas Deaths from lung cancer Mayors of Houston Texas Republicans Businesspeople from Texas 20th-century American politicians People from Slaton, Texas Presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors 20th-century American businesspeople