Richard Harmon Fulton (January 27, 1927 – November 28, 2018) was an American Democratic politician who served as a member of the

Tennessee State Senate The Tennessee Senate is the upper house of the U.S. state of Tennessee's state legislature, which is known formally as the Tennessee General Assembly. The Tennessee Senate has the power to pass resolutions concerning essentially any issue reg ...

and of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, and the second

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

of the Metropolitan Government of

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

and Davidson County.

Personal life

Fulton was born in

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. He graduated from East Nashville High School and served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After returning from his military service, he entered the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

where he played for the

Volunteers Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

on the football team. He died on November 28, 2018, at a

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

in Nashville at the age of 91.

Political career

State Senate

In 1954, Fulton was elected to the

in place of his brother Lyle, who suddenly died from cancer shortly after receiving the Democratic nomination for that post. Fulton was sworn in on January 3, 1955, but because he was only 27, below the minimum age for Senators under the Tennessee State Constitution, the Senate voted unanimously (28–0) to unseat him. Fulton could not serve in the Senate until he was elected in 1956 at the age of 31. He was reelected to the Senate in 1958, then left politics to begin a career in real estate.

Congress

In 1962, he entered the Democratic

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

for the Nashville-based 5th Congressional District against incumbent Congressman Joseph Carlton Loser. The election commission initially declared Loser the winner; however, a friend of Fulton successfully filed suit to throw out the primary results after ''

The Tennessean ''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, w ...

'' reported corruption at the commission. In the rerun of the primary, Fulton defeated Loser and was victorious in November. Fulton voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

, and the

Voting Rights Act of 1965 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights move ...

. He resigned from the House after his election as mayor.

Mayor of Nashville

Fulton served three terms as mayor of Nashville, Tennessee from 1975 until 1987. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1978 and 1986. In 1999, he embarked on a comeback mayoral bid where he made it to the runoff election, but then withdrew and endorsed his opponent Bill Purcell. During his tenure as mayor, Fulton was an influential voice in the development of key downtown streets, Riverfront Park, the

Nashville Convention Center Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, located on the Cumberland River. Nashville had a population of 689,447 at the 20 ...

, the construction of Interstate 440, the expanded use of the Metro Development and Housing Agency and established of parks in the city. From 1983 until 1984, Fulton served as president of the

United States Conference of Mayors The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. The cities are each represented by their mayors or other chief elected officials. The organization was founded ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fulton, Richard 1927 births 2018 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Tennessee Democratic Party Tennessee state senators Heads of county government in Tennessee Mayors of Nashville, Tennessee United States Navy personnel of World War II Military personnel from Tennessee University of Tennessee alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee Presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Tennessee General Assembly Tennessee Volunteers football players Players of American football from Nashville, Tennessee