Block, Upload, Automoderated users, edit, move, protect, rollback
57,799
edits
Changes
no edit summary
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Jesse L. Boucher
|name=Jesse L. Boucher
|birth_date=January 7, 1912
|birth_date=January 7, 1912
|occupation=[[Insurance]] agent and [[real estate]] developer
|occupation=[[Insurance]] agent and [[real estate]] developer
|spouse=Eloise Herrington Boucher (married 1940-2004, his death)
|spouse=Eloise Herrington Boucher (married 1940-2004, his death)
|children=Savannah Boucher<br>
Sherry Boucher<br>
Jessica Boucher-Ford
|party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]
|party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]
|religion=[[United Methodist]]
|religion=[[United Methodist]]
|office=[[Mayor]] of Springhill, Louisiana
|term_start=1958
|term_end=1962
|preceded=Charles Emmett "Jack" McConnell
|succeeded=James Allen
}}
}}
'''Jesse L. Boucher''' (January 7, 1912 – December 25, 2004)<ref name=obit>Jesse L. Boucher obituary, ''Minden Press-Herald'', December 27, 2004, access date= January 16, 2015.</ref> was a north [[Louisiana]] [[insurance]] agency owner and large-scale [[real estate]] developer who also served from 1958 to 1962 as the mayor of his native Springhill in northern Webster Parish.
'''Jesse L. Boucher''' (January 7, 1912 – December 25, 2004)<ref name=obit>Jesse L. Boucher obituary, ''Minden Press-Herald'', December 27, 2004, access date= January 16, 2015.</ref> was a north [[Louisiana]] [[insurance]] agency owner and large-scale [[real estate]] developer who also served from 1958 to 1962 as the mayor of his native Springhill in northern Webster Parish.
==Business, political, and civic activities==
==Business, political, and civic activities==
Boucher returned to Springhill to resume his insurance business but soon branched into developing subdivisions and constructing apartments, shopping centers, industrial buildings, schools, and hotels, in both Louisiana and Pine Bluff, Hot Springs and Fordyce, Arkansas. Upon returning to Springhill he realized the lack of rental housing. This prompted him to begin building houses. In 1946, he opened an electric supply company in Springhill, known as B & S Supply, Inc., which by 1975 was a Fortune 500 company. His development projects were in Springhill, Bossier City, Vivian, [[Baton Rouge]], Lake Charles, and Natchitoches as well [[Little Rock]] and Pine Bluff, Arkansas.<ref name=obit/><ref name=boco/>
Boucher returned to Springhill to resume his insurance business but soon branched into developing subdivisions and constructing apartments, shopping centers, industrial buildings, schools, and hotels, in both Louisiana and Pine Bluff, Hot Springs and Fordyce, Arkansas. Upon returning to Springhill he realized the lack of rental housing. This prompted him to begin building houses. In 1946, he opened an electric supply company in Springhill, known as B & S Supply, Inc., which by 1975 was a Fortune 500 company. His development projects were in Springhill, Bossier City, Vivian, [[Baton Rouge]], Lake Charles, and [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]] as well [[Little Rock]] and Pine Bluff, Arkansas.<ref name=obit/><ref name=boco/>
He was elected mayor in 1958 to succeed Charles Emmett McConnell (1923-2000), a [[lawyer]] who subsequently made losing races in 1967 and 1971 for the Louisiana House of Representatives. He did not seek reelection as mayor in 1962 and was succeeded by James Allen. Active in civic matters, Boucher was the chairman of the Springhill American Legion post and as president of the Springhill Lions Club, and the Springhill High School Alumni Association, which he formed with his friend Woodrow Turner. He also organized and developed the Lumberjack Festival in Springhill, named for the high school athletic teams.<ref name=obit/> In 1957, he was named head of the Webster Parish [[United Way of America]] charity drive.<ref>"Jesse Boucher heads United Fund", Minden Herald, June 13, 1957, p. 1.</ref>
He was elected mayor in 1958 to succeed Charles Emmett McConnell (1923-2000), a [[lawyer]] who subsequently made losing races in 1967 and 1971 for the Louisiana House of Representatives. He did not seek reelection as mayor in 1962 and was succeeded by James Allen. Active in civic matters, Boucher was the chairman of the Springhill American Legion post and as president of the Springhill Lions Club, and the Springhill High School Alumni Association, which he formed with his friend Woodrow Turner. He also organized and developed the Lumberjack Festival in Springhill, named for the high school athletic teams.<ref name=obit/> In 1957, he was named head of the Webster Parish [[United Way of America]] charity drive.<ref>"Jesse Boucher heads United Fund", Minden Herald, June 13, 1957, p. 1.</ref>