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'''William Putnam Sevier, Jr.''', sometimes known as '''Buck Sevier'''  (October 13, 1899 &ndash; September 4, 1985)<ref name=cemetery>{{cite web|url=http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lamadiso/cemeteries/smsasl.htm|title=Tallulah Cemeteries|publisher=rootsweb.ancestry|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> was the longest-serving [[mayor]] of a community in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Louisiana]]. A banker in Tallulah, Louisiana, the seat of Madison Parish, Sevier was first elected to tree terms as alderman.  In 1946 he was elected as mayor of the city, and served, with repeated re-elections, from 1947 to 1974. Madison Parish is located in the [[Mississippi River]] delta country in the northeastern potion of his state.

'''William Putnam Sevier, Jr.''', sometimes known as '''Buck Sevier'''  (October 13, 1899 &ndash; September 4, 1985)<ref name=cemetery>{{cite web|url=http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lamadiso/cemeteries/smsasl.htm|title=Tallulah Cemeteries|publisher=rootsweb.ancestry|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> was the longest-serving [[mayor]] of a community in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Louisiana]]. A banker in Tallulah, Louisiana, the seat of Madison Parish, Sevier was first elected to tree terms as alderman.  In 1946 he was elected as mayor of the city, and served, with repeated re-elections, from 1947 to 1974. Madison Parish is located in the [[Mississippi River]] delta country in the northeastern potion of his state.

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He is a great-great-grandson of John Sevier, a [[Tennessee]] pioneer and first [[governor]] of that state. He was a cousin of state Senator Andrew L. Sevier and state Representative]] Henry Clay Sevier, both also from Tallulah.<ref name=roots/>​

He is a great-great-grandson of John Sevier, a [[Tennessee]] pioneer and first [[governor]] of that state. He was a cousin of state Senator Andrew L. Sevier and state Representative Henry Clay Sevier, both also from Tallulah.<ref name=roots/>​

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==Biographical sketch==​

==Biographical sketch==​

He attended [[Louisiana State University]] in [[Baton Rouge]] with hopes of becoming a lawyer. He was a member of the Sigma Nu fraternity. His studies were interrupted by [[World War I]], when he served as a balloon observer.  He never completed legal studies but returned to Tallulah in 1922. He worked at the [[United States Department of Agriculture]] experiment station there, which was established to try to develop ways to protect [[cotton]] growers from the pervasive boll weevil, which was destroying crops throughout the South.  This station developed products and processes for crop dusting from airplanes.<ref name=bio>{{cite web|url= http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lamadiso/bios/sevierwp.txt|title=William Putnam Sevier, Jr., Mayor of Tallulah, Madison Parish, Louisiana|publisher=rootswebancestry.com|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> Hundreds of flights took off from the Tallulah Airport as they worked on the best methods to dust the crops. Delta Dusters, a company that developed here to carry out crop dusting, was the origin of Delta Airlines.​

He attended [[Louisiana State University]] in [[Baton Rouge]] with hopes of becoming a lawyer. He was a member of the Sigma Nu fraternity. His studies were interrupted by [[World War I]], when he served as a balloon observer.  He never completed legal studies but returned to Tallulah in 1922. He worked at the [[United States Department of Agriculture]] experiment station there, which was established to try to develop ways to protect [[cotton]] growers from the pervasive boll weevil, which was destroying crops throughout the South.  This station developed products and processes for crop dusting from airplanes.<ref name=bio>{{cite web|url= http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lamadiso/bios/sevierwp.txt|title=William Putnam Sevier, Jr., Mayor of Tallulah, Madison Parish, Louisiana|publisher=rootswebancestry.com|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> Hundreds of flights took off from the Tallulah Airport as they worked on the best methods to dust the crops. Delta Dusters, a company that developed here to carry out crop dusting, was the origin of Delta Airlines.​

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Soon Seveier became a teller at Tallulah State Bank. He worked with the institution and advanced to lead it, serving fifty-eight years until he was eighty. He retired with the title of chairman emeritus. When Sevier began working for the bank, it employed only five people and did not use electricity until after 5 p.m. All receipts were hand-posted. He was working at the bank during the [[Wall Street Crash of 1929]] and the [[Great Depression]], a period in which many financial institutions closed. But his bank survived and has never closed its doors.<ref name=bio/> ​

Soon Seveier became a teller at Tallulah State Bank. He worked with the institution and advanced to lead it, serving fifty-eight years until he was eighty. He retired with the title of chairman emeritus. When Sevier began working for the bank, it employed only five people and did not use electricity until after 5 p.m. All receipts were hand-posted. He was working at the bank during the [[Wall Street]] Crash of 1929 and the [[Great Depression]] which followed. It was a period in which many financial institutions closed, but Sevier's bank survived and has never closed its doors.<ref name=bio/> ​

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Sevier served as president of the Louisiana Bankers Association in 1961-1962<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lba.org/content.cfm?id=63|title=LBA Past Chairmen|publisher=lba.org|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> and vice president of the American Bankers Association  from 1963 to 1964. He also served as a director of the Standard Life Insurance Company of [[Jackson]], Mississippi.<ref name=bio/>​ Sevier was elected in 1946as the Tallulah mayor and assumed office in 1947. He was repeatedly reelected and served through 1974.<ref name=bio/> (During most of this period, the majority-[[African- American]] population of the city was largely disenfranchised by the state's 1898 constitution and discriminatory practices. This changed after passage of civil rights legislation.) ​

Sevier served as president of the Louisiana Bankers Association in 1961-1962<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lba.org/content.cfm?id=63|title=LBA Past Chairmen|publisher=lba.org|accessdate=July 24, 2013}}</ref> and vice president of the American Bankers Association  from 1963 to 1964. He also served as a director of the Standard Life Insurance Company of [[Jackson]], Mississippi.<ref name=bio/>​ Sevier was elected in 1946as the Tallulah mayor and assumed office in 1947. He was repeatedly reelected and served through 1974.<ref name=bio/> (During most of this period, the majority-[[African- American]] population of the city was largely disenfranchised by the state's 1898 constitution and discriminatory practices. This changed after passage of civil rights legislation.) ​

Election fever has hit Tallulah again, and it hardly seems that four years have passed since the last battle for municipal offices. ... Perhaps, though, the most unusual aspect of this race is that it'll be the first time in over 40 years that Mayor W. P. "Buck" Sevier hasn't offered himself for election. It would probably be hard for him to admit so soon, but we bet he'll miss the job before long. Tallulah and her people have always been first, last and always with him—a more loyal citizen she has never had. When elected mayor in 1946, he had already served as alderman for three terms. Well known in banking as well as political circles, he has made Tallulah a fine ambassador wherever he has traveled. His leadership will be missed, but his good citizenship, we are sure, will be with us always. ...<br>​

Election fever has hit Tallulah again, and it hardly seems that four years have passed since the last battle for municipal offices. ... Perhaps, though, the most unusual aspect of this race is that it'll be the first time in over 40 years that Mayor W. P. "Buck" Sevier hasn't offered himself for election. It would probably be hard for him to admit so soon, but we bet he'll miss the job before long. Tallulah and her people have always been first, last and always with him—a more loyal citizen she has never had. When elected mayor in 1946, he had already served as alderman for three terms. Well known in banking as well as political circles, he has made Tallulah a fine ambassador wherever he has traveled. His leadership will be missed, but his good citizenship, we are sure, will be with us always. ...<br>​

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"Character" is really not an apt description of Buck Sevier. "Legend" is more fitting. So great was the admiration for him that I don't think he ever had opposition for mayor, except maybe once in his early career. This carried over even when blacks started seeking public office. They didn't run against him either. No wonder. He was respected because he was fair to blacks as well as whites, both as a mayor and as a banker. ...<ref>Carroll Regan, "Baghdad on the Bayou", ''Madison Journal,'' February 1974</ref></blockquote>​

"Character" is really not an apt description of Buck Sevier. "Legend" is more fitting. So great was the admiration for him that I don't think he ever had opposition for mayor, except maybe once in his early career. This carried over even when blacks started seeking public office. They didn't run against him either. No wonder. He was respected because he was fair to blacks as well as whites, both as a mayor and as a banker. ...<ref>Carroll Regan, "Baghdad on the Bayou", ''Madison Journal,'' February 1974.</ref></blockquote>​

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==References==​

==References==​