Terry Schrunk
| Terry Schrunk | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 44th Mayor of Portland, Oregon | |
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In office January 1, 1957 – January 1, 1973 |
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| Preceded by | Fred L. Peterson |
| Succeeded by | Neil Goldschmidt |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
March 10, 1913 Stayton, Oregon, United States |
| Died | March 4, 1975 (aged 61) Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Profession | Politician |
| Religion | Protestantism |
Terrence Doyle Schrunk (March 10, 1913 – March 4, 1975) was an American politician who served as the mayor for the city of Portland, Oregon, 1957–1973, a length tying with George Luis Baker, who also served 16 years (1917–1933). Before becoming mayor, he was sheriff of Multnomah County since 1949. In his 1956 campaign for mayor, he advocated for urban renewal. Schrunk beat incumbent Fred L. Peterson by 17,000 votes in a nine-person primary, but did not get an absolute majority, and then beat Peterson in the fall run-off election. He took office at midnight on January 1, 1957.
In mid-twentieth-century Portland, gambling dens, brothels, and unlicensed bars operated virtually uninhibited by police as long as vice racketeers paid scheduled kickbacks to key city law enforcement officials.
Schrunk was elected mayor with Teamsters union support, allegedly in part because the incumbent Republican mayor, Fred Peterson, offended the union when he wouldn't oust Police chief J. Bardell Purcell. The Teamsters felt that Purcell impeded their drive to open a wider vice business in Portland.
In 1957 he appeared as himself in the CBS documentary film A Day Called X.
An allegation against Mayor Schrunk soon landed him before the special Senate committee headed by Arkansas Democrat John McClellan investigating U.S. labor racketeering in March 1957. While still sheriff in September 1955, Schrunk and his deputies had raided the 8212 Club, a gambling and after-hours drinking joint financed by Portland Racketeer James B. Elkins. Elkins testified that the manager, Clifford Bennett, told him he had paid Schrunk $500, and the sheriff had gone away without causing any more trouble—except for arresting a few drunks. Although Bennett refused to testify, several others confirmed pieces of the story. Schrunk flatly denied having taken bribes from Bennett. But he did admit that his deputies had raided the 8212 Club, seen liquor being illegally served after hours, spotted gambling equipment all over the place—and that he had gone away without taking further action.
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Wikipedia