Ken Hinchey was an Alaskan entrepreneur. He served one term as Mayor of Anchorage, Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

 from 1955 to 1956.

Biography

Ken Hinchey was born September 9, 1912 in Fern Hill, Tacoma, Washington

Fern Hill, Tacoma, Washington

Fern Hill, a neighborhood located in the southern part of Tacoma, Washington, is generally defined as extending north to S. 72nd St, south to the city boundaries at 96th St, west to S. Sheridan Ave, and east to Pacific Avenue....

. In 1933, he married Nadine Graves, and in 1937 the couple moved to Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...

. Hinchey started a number of businesses in Alaska, including Northern Transfer, the Black and White Restaurant, Alaska Aggregate Corporation, Idealaska Cement, and Pacific Western Lines. He also mined gold in Hope

Hope, Alaska

Hope is a census-designated place in Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2000 census the population was 137.-Geography:Hope is located at...

, invented machines, and transported oil from Valdez

Valdez, Alaska

Valdez is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,020. The city is one of the most important ports in Alaska. The port of Valdez was named in 1790 after the Spanish naval officer Antonio Valdés y...

 to Fairbanks

Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...

 for the military during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. He was an avid bush pilot.

Hinchey was elected to a single term mayor of Anchorage

Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...

 in 1955. He advocated statehood for the Territory of Alaska and building a dam on the Cook Inlet

Cook Inlet

Cook Inlet stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Cook Inlet branches into the Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm at its northern end, almost surrounding Anchorage....

causeway.

He died April 21, 1994 at the age of 81.