198:, a job which he held for 8 years. He created and implemented what is now known as the Tourist Promotion Agency Fund. During this time he also met his wife Elsie, and together they continued to run their business until 1970. In 1969, Swenson won the Mayoral race in Harrisburg in an upset against the
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reporter Paul Beers wrote that within his first month he "established his magisterial presence, and within the first year he was regarded as the mayor of the entire
Harrisburg area, invited to cut many of the ribbons in suburbia." At that time, his salary for Mayor was only $ 15,000, and his wife
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of
Harrisburg from 1983-1984. Together with his wife, they established the Harold and Elsie Swenson Fund with the Greater Harrisburg Foundation to support the Harrisburg park system. Following his passing in 1995, the Swenson Plaza was dedicated to him by Mayor
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225:. It was widely noted that he put managing before politics, and retained competent workers at City Hall regardless of party. Some criticized him of weak Democrat allegiance, calling him a "
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on Third Street. From this he was appointed the first director of the Travel and
Vacation Bureau of the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce in 1959 under Gov.
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Elsie was earning more. Swenson was praised for navigating and calming anxieties after the 1969 Race Riots,
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with the folding of the
Harrisburg Railways. Following his Mayoral tenure, Swenson was President of the
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154:(October 24, 1927 – March 15, 1995) was an American businessman, philanthropist, airman with the
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242:(who hired Swenson as a budget consultant upon being elected) in 1999 at the base of the
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machine and took office in 1970, becoming the first elected
Democrat in 58 years.
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217:. In a daring investment of the City, he championed Harristown redeveloping
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City contented, city discontented : a history of modern
Harrisburg
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186:. In 1954 Swenson started in the business of tourism, owning a
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Pennsylvania
Department of Community and Economic Development
289:"Pennsylvania doesn't quite have it down on marketing"
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He served as a Staff
Sergeant in the Air Force during
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429:"Swenson Plaza Flood Memorial Historical Marker"
381:"Past Presidents | Rotary Club of Harrisburg"
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409:The Foundation For Enhancing Communities
213:Trial, and then Flood of 1972 caused by
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182:in 1945, for which he was awarded a
505:Mayors of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
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500:20th-century American politicians
405:"Harold and Elsie Swenson Fund"
287:Editorial, Guest (2011-07-08).
264:"Harold Swenson - Recipient -"
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357:"Elsie Swenson Oral History"
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355:Lehtimaki, Taavi (2011).
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164:Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
268:valor.militarytimes.com
156:United States Air Force
510:Pennsylvania Democrats
184:Prisoner of War Medal
477:Paul E. Doutrich, Jr
385:portal.clubrunner.ca
317:Beers, Paul (2011).
244:Walnut Street Bridge
231:Capital Area Transit
78:Paul E. Doutrich, Jr
467:Mayor of Harrisburg
140:Syracuse University
43:Mayor of Harrisburg
16:American politician
452:Political offices
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474:Succeeded by
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223:Strawberry Square
196:David L. Lawrence
152:Harold A. Swenson
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436:. Retrieved
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176:World War II
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73:Succeeded by
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515:1995 deaths
495:1927 births
235:Rotary Club
227:Republicrat
61:Preceded by
489:Categories
471:1970-1978
438:2022-03-14
414:2022-03-14
390:2022-03-14
298:2022-03-14
273:2022-03-14
250:References
122:Democratic
365:March 14,
339:761221337
194:and then
170:Biography
136:Education
55:1970–1978
51:In office
293:pennlive
219:Downtown
103:New York
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128:Spouse
105:, U.S.
360:(PDF)
221:with
367:2022
335:OCLC
325:ISBN
110:Died
93:Born
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
