Marshall Kurfees

Term Served

1949 to 1961

Accomplishments in Office

A flamboyant, can-do populist, Marshall Kurfees, scorned by the power structure and belittled by the press, won the third time he ran for mayor. In a dozen years, he turned the city upside down, changing its heart and soul as well as its face and body. He opened jobs and seats on the boards to black citizens, secured highly advanced water and wastewater facilities, a hospital authority, and approval for Interstate 40.

Marshall Kurfees