H. C. Milford

H. C. Milford
5th County Executive of St. Louis County
In office October 25, 1989 – January 1, 1991
Preceded by	Gene McNary
Succeeded by	Buzz Westfall
Personal details
Political party	Republican

H. C. Milford is a retired insurance executive,^[1] financial consultant, and Republican politician from Missouri.

Political career

Milford became St. Louis County Executive on October 25, 1989^[2] when Gene McNary, serving his fourth term in the position was appointed Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service by President George H.W. Bush.^[3]

As county executive, Milford proposed that St. Louis International Airport be run by an independent authority, rather than the City of St. Louis.^[4] Little more than a year into his role as county executive, Milford decided to stand for re-election in November 1990. He was defeated by the Democratic nominee, Buzz Westfall, by a margin of 55%-45%.^[5] This defeat ended 28 years of Republican control of the government of St. Louis County,^[6] and, as of 2013, made Milford the last Republican to lead the county.

Redevelopment career

Following his defeat, Milford volunteered to serve as economic development directior,^[7] and financial consultant^[8] for economically depressed East St. Louis, Illinois. Working with newly elected East St. Louis mayor Gordon Bush, Milford lent credibility to several re-development projects and thus helped to attract wary investors to the city.^[1] Of the re-development projects he was involved in, the most visible is the Casino Queen, a riverboat casino on the East St. Louis waterfront of the Mississippi River, and at the time of its construction, a sorely needed source of revenue for the city.^[1] Milford continued to work to improve East St. Louis until at least 2003, commuting there from his home in Webster Groves, Missouri.^[9]

Electoral history

1990 Election for County Executive of St. Louis County[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	H. C. Milford	144,949	45.43
	Democratic	Buzz Westfall	174,099	54.57

References

1. "A View from Metro East". Lib.niu.edu. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
2. "STLtoday.com". Nl.newsbank.com. 1989-10-26. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
3. "Blacktie | Have you met Gene McNary?". Blacktie-missouri.com. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
4. "Article: Milford pushes for new management at Lambert. (H.C. Milford, county... | AccessMyLibrary - Promoting library advocacy". AccessMyLibrary. 1990-08-13. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
5. "St. Louis County Executive Race - Nov 06, 1990". Our Campaigns. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
6. "Buzz Westfall: A Life and A Career". ksdk.com. 2003-10-28. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
7. Michael Tackett (1991-08-04). "East St. Louis Shows Signs Of Working". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
8. "East St. Louis Mayoral Race : Developers Keep Close Eye On Election. 'It'S Important That Whoever Carries On Continues To Attract Development.'.(Metro)(Profile\East St. Louis Mayoral Race) | Highbeam Business: Arrive Prepared". Business.highbeam.com. 1998-12-20. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
9. "Des Peres Author Andrew Theising Pens "East St. Louis: Made In The U.S.A."". Websterkirkwoodtimes.com. 2003-06-27. Retrieved 2013-02-16.