Louie Welch: Difference between revisions

| name = Louie Welch

| image = Louie Welch (3x4a).jpeg

| caption =Louie Welch speaking, c. 1960's

| office = 54th [[List of mayors of Houston| = 54th [[Mayor of Houston]]

| term_start = January 2, 1964

| term_end =1973 January 2, 1974

| predecessor = [[Lewis Wesley Cutrer|Lewis Cutrer]]

| successor = [[Fred Hofheinz]]

| birth_date = {{birth date|1918|12|9}}

| birth_place = [[Lockney, Texas|Lockney]], [[Texas]]U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2008|1|27|1918|12|9}}

| death_place = [[Houston]], [[Texas|Houston]], TexasU.S.

| resting_place = Brookside Memorial Park in Houston

| religionfootnotes =[[Church of Christ]] =

'''Louie Welch''' (December 9, 1918 – January 27, 2008) was an American politician who served from 1964 to 19731974 as the [[List of mayors of Houston|mayor of Houston, Texas]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Smith |first=Roger |title=Ex-Mayors shaped today's Houston: Louie Welch, Fred Hofheinz, Kathy Whitmire and Bob Lanier led Houston through four decades. All but Whitmire remain plugged into city politics. |work=City Savvy Online Edition |date=Winter 2003 |url=http://www.houstontx.gov/hr/savvypages/archives/Winter03/winter03_exmayors.htm |accessdate=February 6, 2007 |url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060926134219/http://www.houstontx.gov/hr/savvypages/archives/Winter03/winter03_exmayors.htm |archivedate=September 26, 2006 }}</ref>

Welch was born on December 9, 1918, in [[Lockney, Texas|Lockney]] in [[Floyd County, Texas|Floyd County]] in [[West Texas]].<ref>"[http://www.houstonlibrary.org/welch/ Mayor Louie Welch 1918 – 2008]{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}," ''[[Houston Public Library]]''</ref> and grew up in [[Slaton, Texas|Slaton]].<ref>[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24218943/louie-william-welch Louie William Welch (1918-2008) - Find A Grave Memorial] Retrieved 2018-04-13.</ref> His father, Gilford Edgar Welch, was an automobile mechanic. His mother, the former Nora Shackleford, taught a Bible study at the [[Church of Christ]] 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|Abilene]], Texas, at [[Abilene Christian University|Abilene Christian College]], now Abilene Christian University, where he was a varsity [[cheerleader]] and a member of Phi Delta Psi social club. In 1940, he received his [[Bachelor of Arts]] in history.<ref>''Abilene Christian University Alumni Directory 2009''. Abilene, Texas: ACU Press, 2009. The ''Directory'' lists his children at birth as Tina, Gary, Shannon, Lisa, Louie, and Guy.</ref> He was married on December 17, 1940, to his first wife, Iola Faye Cure, in a ceremony performed by [[Homer Hailey]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/welch.html|title=The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Welch|website=politicalgraveyard.com|accessdate=Jun 18, 2020}}</ref>

At the coaxing of fellow [[Lions International]] members, Welch was elected to the Houston City Council and served four two-year terms from 1950 to 1952 and then 1956 to 1962.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Archives |first=L. A. Times |date=2008-01-29 |title=Five-term mayor of Houston |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-jan-29-me-passings29.s1-story.html |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

Houston grew immensely when Welch was mayor.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Swartz |first=Mimi |date=1985-10-01 |title=The Louie File |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/the-louie-file/ |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=Texas Monthly |language=en}}</ref> 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]] in 1965 and the [[Houston Intercontinental Airport]] in 1969. [[NASA]] at nearby [[Mission Control]] sent a man to the moon. [[Lake Conroe]] and [[Lake Livingston]] opened to provide water for Houston. Welch also closed forty inefficient sewage treatment plants, began cleaning up the [[Houston Ship Channel]], 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]] areas with which some claim he had trouble.

By the time that Welch left office in 19731974, Houston was within two years of supplanting [[Detroit]] to become the fifth largest city in the United States in 1975, and in the fall of 1980, the fourth.

Welch was mayor in 1967 when two days of siege by the Houston police at predominantly black [[Texas Southern University]]. 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.

Welch served as President of the [[U.S. Conference of Mayors]] in 1972–73<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usmayors.org/the-conference/leadership/ |title=Leadership |date=November 23, 2016 |access-date=July 24, 2020 |publisher=The United States Conference of Mayors}}</ref> and as Vice President of the [[National League of Cities]] 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]]). His company was Louie Welch & Associates.<ref>''Abilene Christian University Alumni Directory''. Abilene, Texas: ACU Press, 2009.</ref>

Welch died at the age of 89 from [[lung cancer]] on January 27, 2008, in his north [[Harris County, Texas|Harris County]] residence.<ref name="WelchDied">"[http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=5916726 Former Houston Mayor Welch dies] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080129164230/http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news%2Flocal&id=5916726 |date=2008-01-29 }}," ''[[KTRK-TV]]''</ref> 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.

[[Category:Deaths from lung cancer in Texas]]