Harry William Baals ( ; November 16, 1886 – May 9, 1954) was an American politician who was the Republican mayor of

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...

, from 1934 to 1947, and from 1951 until his death in 1954.

Career

When Baals first took office, he consolidated city departments and lowered city tax rates. He launched construction of Fort Wayne's massive underground sewage system and had the city sewage treatment plant built, which is still being used today. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, Baals directed war materials drives, upgraded city equipment and services, and broke ground for Baer Field, now Fort Wayne International Airport. In the 1930s, one of his major accomplishments was getting the old Nickel Plate Railroad tracks, running through downtown, to be elevated. This opened up the north side of the city for development. Fort Wayne newscaster Bob Chase, of WOWO-AM, once mispronounced the mayor's name . Baals personally called Chase to correct his pronunciation, saying, "son, this is your Mayor. I pronounce my name ."

Legacy

Harry Baals Drive was named in his honor. It extends east from Parnell Avenue, north and west of the St. Joseph River in

Johnny Appleseed Park Johnny Appleseed Park, including what was formerly known as Archer Park, is a public park in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It is named after the popular-culture nickname of John Chapman, better known as "Johnny Appleseed", a famous American pioneer, who ...

. In recent years, the

double entendre A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, one of which is typically obvious, and the other often conveys a message that would be too socially unacc ...

arising from Baals's name has led Fort Wayne officials to shy away from naming streets and buildings after him. The aforementioned street has been renamed "H. W. Baals Drive" due to persistent

theft Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shor ...

of the street sign.

Proposed Harry Baals Government Center

In early 2011, Fort Wayne city officials invited people to suggest names for a new government building. The winner with 23,826 votes was the "Harry Baals Government Center," more than ten times the votes received by the closest contender. However, city officials almost immediately backed away from the name (many Americans pronounce ''Harry'' identically to ''hairy'' due to the ''Mary–marry–merry'' merger). The city's deputy mayor Beth Malloy said, "We realize that while Harry Baals was a respected mayor, not everyone outside of Fort Wayne will know that. We wanted to pick something that would reflect our pride in our community beyond the boundaries of Fort Wayne." It was later announced that the building would be named " Citizens Square."

Personal life

He had two children: Marceil D. Baals Smith and Donald Baals. Baals's descendants have taken to pronouncing their name . Harry W. Baals died in 1954 of a

kidney In humans, the kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped blood-filtering organ (anatomy), organs that are a multilobar, multipapillary form of mammalian kidneys, usually without signs of external lobulation. They are located on the left and rig ...

infection, while serving his fourth term as mayor. He is buried at

Lindenwood Cemetery Lindenwood Cemetery is a rural cemetery operated by Dignity Memorial in Fort Wayne, Indiana, established in 1859. With over 74,000 graves and covering , it is one of the largest cemeteries in Indiana. Famous interments include some of the most ...

References

Citations Bibliography * "Baals, Harry William" (biographical sketch, p. 747), ''Who's Who and What's What in Indiana Politics'', published by James E. Perry, Indianapolis, 1944.

External links

Killer in the Rain
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baals, Harry Mayors of Fort Wayne, Indiana Indiana Republicans 1886 births 1954 deaths 20th-century Indiana politicians Politicians from Fort Wayne, Indiana