Fred L. Peterson was an American politician and businessman in the state of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. A native of Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

, he grew up in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, where he served as mayor from 1953 to 1956.

Early life

Fred Lawrence Peterson was born on May 21, 1896 in Minnesota. His parents were Frank R. Peterson and Nina A. Peterson. Peterson lived in Portland from 1902, and graduated from Washington High School

Washington High School (Portland, Oregon)

Washington High School was a high school in Portland, Oregon, United States, described in 1950 as "Portland's finest high school." It was part of the Portland school district. Opened in September 1906, the school was originally named the East Side High School, but changed its name to Washington in...

 in 1915. His father Frank operated the Lents pharmacy for a number of years. Fred served as a sergeant in the 162nd Infantry Regiment

162nd Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 162nd Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the Oregon Army National Guard with headquarters in Springfield, Oregon. In January, 2006 as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, the 1st Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment was inactivated...

 during World War I and was later promoted to second lieutenant.

City Commissioner 1941-1952

In 1940, Peterson was a prominent Portland east side businessman when he began his run for political office. At that time, he was pharmacist and proprietor of the Glisan Street Pharmacy. It was Peterson’s contention, as stated at the Willamette Democratic Society luncheon on April 18, 1940 that “…city hall is a place for business men and a business administration” (Oregonian April 19, 1940 p. 7). His unsuccessful first campaign for city commissioner in 1940 called on Portland citizens to clean up the city for children, building more parks and playgrounds. His second campaign for city commissioner, also in 1940, was successful, and he took office on January 1, 1941. As commissioner he presided over the Bureau of Health. He continued to serve as a city commissioner until elected as mayor.

Peterson served three terms as city commissioner. During his later service as commissioner, he battled with Mayor Dorothy McCullough Lee

Dorothy McCullough Lee

Dorothy McCullough Lee was an American politician and attorney in the state of Oregon. She was the first female mayor of Portland, Oregon.-Early life:...

, Portland's first female mayor. Ironically, he had encouraged her to run for office. Lee was a reform minded Republican who devoted attention to removing slot machines from American Legion, Eagles, and Shrine facilities and even the prestigious Multnomah Athletic Club

Multnomah Athletic Club

The Multnomah Athletic Club is a private social club and athletic club in Portland, Oregon, United States.Founded in 1891, the club has expanded greatly from its beginnings. It now fills two buildings totaling , making it the largest indoor athletic club in the world...

 all of which Peterson as commissioner and member of the business community opposed. Her attempt to have gambling punchboard

Punchboard

A punchboard is a game board, primarily consisting of a number of holes, which was used once for lottery playings.-Origin:Punchboards were originally used in the 18th century for gambling purposes. A local tavern owner would construct a game board out of wood, drill small holes in it, and fill each...

s removed from shops was also opposed by Peterson. She responded by removing Fred as commissioner of finance and made him commissioner of public utilities, pointedly adding garbage collection and street sweeping to his new duties. The two fought for the mayoralty in a close election that Peterson won in November 1952.

Mayor 1953-1956

Peterson served as mayor from January 1, 1953 to December 31, 1956. In 1955 when the new chief engineer of the Water Bureau L. Kenneth Anderson told him a new dam was needed in the Bull Run watershed immediately, Peterson told him to get it done now. Anderson replied that a great deal of planning and design would be required, to which Peterson said “Put the dam in this summer and then you can plan and design it next winter during the slow period”.

Amongst the events of his administration was a visit by the Oregon Zoo

Oregon Zoo

The Oregon Zoo, formerly the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo in Portland, the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located southwest of Downtown Portland, the zoo is inside Portland's Washington Park, and includes a narrow-gauge railway that connects to the International Rose Test Garden inside...

’s newly acquired elephant Rosy to City Hall on September 26, 1953. On June 11, 1955 Peterson rode in a car in the Portland Rose Festival

Portland Rose Festival

The Portland Rose Festival is an annual civic festival held during the month of June in Portland, Oregon. It is organized by the volunteer non-profit Portland Rose Festival Association with the purpose of promoting the Portland region...

 Parade with ex-president Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...

.

Personal Information

Peterson was a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles

Fraternal Order of Eagles

Fraternal Order of Eagles International is a fraternal organization that was founded on February 6, 1898, in Seattle, Washington by a group of six theater owners including John Cort , brothers John W. and Tim J. Considine, Harry Leavitt , Mose Goldsmith and Arthur Williams...

, American Legion

American Legion

The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...

, the Forty and Eight veterans organization

Forty and Eight veterans organization

The Forty and Eight is an organization of veterans of the United States armed forces. Its official name is "La Société des Quarante Hommes et Huit Chevaux," which is French, and translates as "The Society of Forty Men and Eight Horses."-History:...

, the Portland chapter of Rotary International

Rotary International

Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...

, and the Portland Breakfast Club.

Until her death, Peterson was married to Madeline E. (born July 28, 1898 and died June 8, 1964) and later to Margaruite “Peg”. Peterson died of cancer at age 89 on October 16, 1985. He is buried at Willamette National Cemetery

Willamette National Cemetery

Willamette National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located about southeast of the city of Portland, Oregon. The cemetery encompasses straddling the county line between Multnomah and Clackamas Counties. Up to the end of 2005, there had been 126,561 interments.- History :Plans to...

in Portland, Oregon.