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Chattanooga Knows: Who was the first Chattanooga mayor elected to a four-year term?

Chattanooga Public Library, Paul A. Hiener Collection / T.C. Thompson, Chattanooga mayor from 1909-15, is pictured in the middle row, second from left, in 1912, along with the first Chattanooga City Commission. The commission included, bottom row, center, H. Clay Evans, commissioner of eduction and health; middle row, left, T.C. Betterton, commissioner of police and fire; middle row, right, Vice Mayor J.H. Warner, commissioner of public utilities, grounds and buildings; and top row, middle, A.N. Sloan, commissioner of streets and sewers. Chattanooga Public Library, Paul A. Hiener Collection / T.C. Thompson, Chattanooga mayor from 1909-15, is pictured in the middle row, second from left, in 1912, along with the first Chattanooga City Commission. The commission included, bottom row, center, H. Clay Evans, commissioner of eduction and health; middle row, left, T.C. Betterton, commissioner of police and fire; middle row, right, Vice Mayor J.H. Warner, commissioner of public utilities, grounds and buildings; and top row, middle, A.N. Sloan, commissioner of streets and sewers.

By Lew Gilliland December 15, 2024 8 min read

Q. Who was the first Chattanooga mayor elected to a four-year term?

A. The name “T.C. Thompson” became a part of Chattanooga’s dialect during the 20th century because of the children’s hospital he founded that was later named in his honor.

But the story of Thomas Clarkson Thompson is about more than a hospital. Born on the eve of the Civil War, the son of a former South Carolina governor, Thompson was a successful businessman and change agent whose life demonstrated not only an empathy for others but also a desire to bridge the gap between races in his adopted home city.