Political Timeline of Peru

At the third meeting (a year later), the board excepted the offer of Alexander Potter to furnish all equipment necessary for fighting a fire for $52.  This bought five ladders 24 feet long, five ladders 14 feet long, five ladders 15 feet long and three hooks with 22-foot poles.

The board did not meet again for a year, at which time it elected John Lowe president.  For the next five years, Peru governed itself.  The only thing that happened during this time was Mt. Hope Cemetery was platted and bodies that had been buried at random around the town found a final resting place.

In 1848, the citizens felt that Peru had grown enough to be a city.  The original petition asking the state legislature to incorporate the town can be seen at the Miami County Museum.  This legislature created the office of mayor of Peru.  The first election was on March 13, 1848, when William H. McGregor was elected mayor.  After incorporation of the town, the elected term was set at two years.  When a new incorporation occurred in 1867, the term became four years.

The biggest problem of every mayor has been the care of streets and alleys.  In May of 1848, the council graded Broadway.  It was described as "nice, wide gravel road".  Nathan Ross, a prominent lawyer, was elected as the next mayor and his boast was that he "bricked" half of Broadway.  Additions to Peru have been steadily made year after year.  O.C. Dryden, elected in 1850, was a popular mayor because he improved the streets and alleys, aided the city in obtaining industry and in general appointed knowledgeable department heads.  In 1852 and 1853, two different mayors tried unsuccessfully to obtain a railroad for Peru.  John Beal campaigned on the promise he would work for the railroad if it located to Peru and he succeeded.  Peru got its first railroad.  It was a short line between Marion and Peru.  In 1856 E.T. Dickey would get a large railroad to come to town, the Toledo and Wabash.

Chandler C. Moore, elected mayor in 1857, organized Peru's first public library.  James M. Brown, elected in 1860, purchased the first fire engine, a second-hand, horse-drawn pumper.  They also built a fire house at a cost of $1,000.  The Civil War was now in progress and there was fear that Southern troops would burn the town.  The next several mayors, Dickey, Ross, A. Blake, Higgins, O. Blake and Farrar, all worked hard to bring different parts of the town into the corporation and to bring additional railroads to Peru. 

From 1869 to 1875, William McGregor, the first elected mayor of Peru, became mayor again.  Under his administration, the Peru Driving Park and Fair Association was formed.  Also, the gas works was formed and Indiana Bell Telephone Exchange came to town.  The Catholic School was built and five nuns were welcomed to town. 

William Reyburn, mayor from 1876 to 1881 got the water works going.  The gas works was sold to Peru American Gas Company of Philadelphia.  The bridge across the Wabash River at Broadway was condemned in 1879 and a new one built.  Also, the magnificent Bearss Hotel was built on Broadway.  Mayor Reyburn died in office and John Graham finished out his term.

Mayor Graham was in office until 1889.  Under his administration Peru received an electric light system that served 25 costumers.  The power was furnished by Miller's Mill.  In 1884, Peru suffered an earthquake that rattled dishes and upset chairs.  Also, the C & O Park (now West City Park) was given a new ball diamond.  His council paid $3,500 for property on the corner of Main and Miami street in 1886 to build a new City Hall.

Jesse Zern became mayor in 1890.  During his term, a new town sprung up between Ridgeview and the railroad tracks.  It was called Oklahoma and was inhabited by hoboes.  Zern died in office in 1896.  The city council named Orson Durand to finish the term.  A few days later, a new council came into office and elected Charles A Parsons mayor.  Durand refused to vacate the office and the case was taken to the Indiana Supreme Court where it was upheld and Durand became the mayor until 1901.  His administration purchased the light plant for $46,037.51 and also gave F.C. Boyd a franchise to lay an interurban line through Peru.  In October 1900, Theodore Roosevelt came through on a train and spoke at the depot.

William A. Odum served from 1902 to 1910.  His terms were very busy and exciting.  His administration released land to the government for the construction of a new post office on the corner of Sixth and Broadway, voted to pave Sixth Street, permitted the Union Traction Company to lay lines on Broadway and Main Streets, then granted a permit for the tracks to go out Chili Avenue toward Warsaw.    They granted the interurban company permission to connect its rails from Ft. Wayne to Peru and voted to pave Fifth Street.  Mayor Odum learned that 17 factories would soon be locating to Oakdale.  This encouraged him to get the state to assist in building a concrete bridge over the Wabash River on Wayne Street and gave permission for the construction of an entire block of three-story buildings on the west side of Broadway between Fifth and Sixth Streets.  In 1907, the council paved all of Broadway and told the fire department to get rid of all its gray horses.  In 1909, the council gave the okay to A.N. Dukes to build a city hospital at the corner of Dukes and Logan Streets.  Also in 1909, Mayor Odum took time to attend a production of "Snow White" in which young Cole Porter played the role of prince.

John Kreutzer served from 1910 to 1913.  The new high school on Sixth Street was dedicated in 1911 and the light and water plants were consolidated.  In 1913, Peru suffered a devastating flood in which 11 people lost their lives.  Krueutzer's council bought the first "mechanized" fire truck.

William Hammond was mayor from 1914 to 1917.  He proudly pointed out his council getting the county to pave the road between Peru and Chili.  All of his departments were commended for the great job they did cleaning up after a violent windstorm that uprooted dozens of streets and toppled 500 telephone poles.  This same year, the council ordered that all future sidewalks would be made of concrete instead of board.

Morris Clifford was elected mayor in 1918 and served until he died in office in 1921.  His council built a community service center at Fifth and Wabash.  Clifford died in the final days of his term and precinct committeemen chose John Graham, who served only ten days.

Charles Simons served from 1922 to 1925.  In 1922 the will of Mrs. Moses Puterbaugh was probated, giving $12,000 for the construction of a museum and a $10,000 trust fund for its maintenance.  In 1925 Maconaquah Park became city property and Simons' council ordered a golf course laid out.

T.E. Keller served one term, 1926-1929.  His council issued bonds to build a fire station in Oakdale in 1926.  In 1927, it bought land for Lincoln School and land for a new city hall next to the fire station downtown.  In 1929 Wall Street tumbled and the plans for city hall were put on hold.  On October 18, 1929, bandits held up the First National Bank at 10:00 a.m. and escaped with $103,000.  John Dillinger's gang was thought to be responsible.

John Yarling served the next term, 1930-1934.  In 1931, Indiana Bell Telephone Company built its offices on W. Main Street.  In 1933, business picked up for the mayor and the police department when Indiana voted itself a "wet" state and taverns began appearing in Peru.  In 1933, John Dilliinger robbed the Peru police station.

William Long was elected mayor for the next term, 1935-1941. His first year in office, congress voted $1,720,000 for flood control.  The city dredged the Wabash River, took out an island and built a retaining dam on Riverside Drive.  Peru was now considered fairly safe from devastating floods.  The council also cooperated with the Wabash Railroad and built an underpass on North Broadway.

J.O. Miller was elected in 1942 and served until 1947.  World War II was in progress and the payrolls of civilians and military at Bunker Hill Naval Air Station were pumping up local economy.  Many of Peru's young men and women enlisted or were drafted.  In 1947, he issued a proclamation to celebrate the Peru's 100th anniversary.  The city annexed in the Runyan Addition in 1947.

The 1948-1951 term was served by George Wolf.  In 1948, the city annexed in more land, including a 15.43 acre area near Oakdale.

S.G. Cox served the next term, 1952-1955.  He set up a twice a week garbage collection.  He did a great job of taking care of streets and alleys and had the bleachers and refreshment stands built at Maconaquah Park.

From 1956-1959, John Devine was mayor.  His administration faced a lot of accusations of misuse of funds by allowing city workers to receive double and triple overtime.  Around this same time, the light, water and sewage departments of the city were taken from the management of the mayor and his council costing Peru thousands of dollars from its tax structure.

During the 1960-1963 term of re-elected S.G. Cox, the ball diamond at Maconaquah Park was improved, a tornado hit Peru and construction began on the Mississinewa Dam.

Paul Iliff, elected for the 1964-1967 term, paved most of the streets of Peru, built a pavilion, a basketball court and added a considerable amount of play equipment at Maconaquah Park.  Mississinewa Dam was finished in 1967.

Bill Jackson became mayor in 1968 and served until 1971.  During his administration, most of the Peru Airport came under city control.  One of the largest sewer projects in city history, a $2,000,000 undertaking, was completed.  His administration built two city parking lots and city water was improved by a new method of fluoridation.  The new high school was built at Broadway and Daniels Streets.

Edward Moon served almost two terms, 1972-1978.  His administration constructed Davis Park, changed the name of the C & O Park to West City Park and passed a city fire code.   His council also voted to make use of the "Economic Development Commission Act".  Moon resigned in the last year of his tenure and Larry Oyler was named mayor.

Mayor Oyler served two terms on his own, 1978-1983.  He was the youngest and most controversial mayor at the time.  He improved alleys and streets and worked hard to obtain a new city hall, which his council finally voted to build at Broadway and Third Streets.