Highlights Archives
Frank Zeidler — The Last American Socialist
Former Milwaukee Mayor and lifelong Milwaukeean Frank P. Zeidler died Friday of congestive heart failure. The last Socialist to run a major American city, Zeidler's three terms in office (1948 to 1960) were marked by the construction of public housing, the establishment of the first educational television station in Wisconsin, slum clearance and city beautification programs, and strong statements for civil rights.
Zeidler was born in Milwaukee on September 20, 1912. He enrolled for college at both the University of Chicago and Marquette University but never earned a degree due to ill health. Converted to Socialism by its emphasis on peace and on improving the conditions of workers, Zeidler became a part of the party's stronghold in Milwaukee, which controlled the mayor's office for nearly half a century, ending with Zeidler.
Zeidler was first elected to office in 1938, running as a Progressive for county surveyor. He won a six-year term to the Milwaukee School Board in 1941 and again in 1947. In 1948 Zeidler became Milwaukee's third Socialist mayor after Emil Seidel and Daniel Hoan.
When Zeidler took office, Milwaukee was in desperate need of structural and social improvements. Hobbled by both the Depression of the 1930s and World War II, the city had spent little to update existing services to meet the needs of a growing population. Under Zeidler, the city purchased its first garbage trucks, built new fire stations, rebuilt and repaved roads, and constructed low-income and veterans housing. When he left office in 1960, Milwaukee's economy was booming and the city had grown to become the 12th largest in the nation.
Only 47 when he stepped down, Zeidler remained active, working as a teacher, labor arbitrator and mediator, and consultant. He served as director of the Department of Resource Development under Governor John Reynolds from 1963 to 1964, and in 1976 he ran for president on the Socialist Party ticket. His 1,022-page memoir, A Liberal in City Government, written in 1962, was finally published in 2005.
A Socialist until he died, Zeidler is survived by his wife and six children.
:: Posted July 9, 2006
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