George Vaara
American politician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Vaara (May 26, 1899 – July 26, 1976) was mayor of Anchorage, Alaska from 1940 to 1941.
George Vaara | |
|---|---|
| 14th Mayor of Anchorage, Alaska | |
| In office April 8, 1940 – April 9, 1941 | |
| Preceded by | Herbert E. Brown |
| Succeeded by | William Alex Stolt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 26, 1899 |
| Died | July 26, 1976 (aged 77) |
Biography
George Vaara was born May 26, 1899, in Ada, Minnesota. He moved to Anchorage in 1923 and worked as a clerk in a Piggly Wiggly grocery store. In the 1930s, he opened a notions store called Vaara Varieties. He was elected president of the Anchorage School Board in 1939.[1]
Vaara was elected mayor in 1940 in the midst of a housing shortage brought on by the arrival of military personnel preceding the construction of Fort Richardson. He served a single term.
Vaara built a Pepsi-Cola plant on Fifth Avenue in 1943, selling it fifteen years later.
In 1958, Vaara made a bid for nomination as the Republican candidate for governor of the new state of Alaska.[2][3] He withdrew several days later, citing a "heated controversy" between factions of the party.[4]
Vaara moved to Seattle, Washington in 1960. He died at his home in Seattle on July 26, 1976, following a year of incapacitation due to a stroke.
