Cotterill, George F. (George Fletcher), 1865-1958

Mayor of Seattle, Washington State senator, and construction engineer.

George Cotterill, Seattle's assistant city engineer beginning in 1892, was instrumental in the construction of the city's first sewer system and 25 miles of bicycle paths. Cotterill was elected to the state senate in 1906, where he framed the successful amendment to the state constitution recognizing the right of female suffrage. In 1912 he was elected mayor of Seattle on a platform of moral reform and support of municipal ownership projects. After one term, he become chief engineer of the state Highway Department. In 1922 Cotterill became port commissioner, and in 1928 he published a history of the Puget Sound region, The Climax of a World Quest. Cotterill served as both Grand Secretary of the Washington State branch of the International Order of Good Templars and later as chief Templar of the national branch. President Taft appointed him to the International Congress Against Alcoholism in 1909, and Wilson re-appointed him in 1913. Cotterill worked as a draftsman in the King County Assessor's Office until the age of 84. He died in 1958.

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