George W. Dilling (1869 – September 14, 1951) was an American businessman and politician. He served as

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

, from 1911 to 1912, and was also elected to the Washington State Legislature. Dilling was born on his parents' farm near

Urbana, Illinois Urbana ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. As of the 2010 United States Census, Urbana is the 38th-most populous municipality in Illinois. It ...

in 1869, leaving at the age of 14 to manage his own farm. He moved on to selling shoes at a retail store and arrived in Seattle in 1898 to handle the estate of his uncle, John H. Nagle. Dilling's real estate investments in Seattle prospered during the Klondike Gold Rush, making him among the wealthiest men in the city. Dilling entered politics in 1902, being elected to the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

as a member of the Republican Party. He ran for mayor in 1910, as a Progressive reformer, but was defeated in the primary by

Hiram C. Gill Hiram C. Gill (August 23, 1866 – January 7, 1919) was an American lawyer and two-time Mayor of Seattle, Washington, identified with the "open city" politics that advocated toleration of prostitution, alcohol, and gambling.David WilmaGill, Hira ...

and William Hickman Moore. Gill went on to be elected mayor, but was recalled in a special election on February 7, 1911. Dilling was elected by a large margin, carried by the first female electorate in the city's history and the support of the Public Welfare League, and began sweeping reforms to undo many of Gill's controversial decisions. Dilling served out the rest of Gill's term and declined to run for re-election in March 1912, endorsing George F. Cotterill. After his tenure as mayor, Dilling moved to California to continue his real estate business. He returned to Seattle in 1928 as head of the Economic Investing Corporation. He died on September 14, 1951, at the age of 82, a year after suffering from a stroke. Dilling Way, a one-block street near

City Hall Park City Hall Park is a public park surrounding New York City Hall in the Civic Center of Manhattan. It was the town commons of the nascent city of New York. History 17th century David Provoost was an officer in the Dutch West India Compan ...

and the

King County Courthouse The King County Courthouse is the administrative building housing the judicial branch of King County, Washington's government. It is located in downtown Seattle, just north of Pioneer Square. The 1916 structure houses the King County Prosecuting ...

in Pioneer Square, is named in the mayor's honor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dilling, George W. 1869 births 1951 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Washington (state) Mayors of Seattle Republican Party members of the Washington House of Representatives