Homewood Merger Committee

The Homewood Merger Committee was a group of business owners and leading citizens from Homewood that supported the proposed merger of Homewood with Birmingham in 1964. The group's address was 2803 18th Street South.

Some of early momentum for supporting the merger had been undercut when the Birmingham City Commission voted to close city parks in 1962 rather than desegregate them. By the time the referendum was scheduled, residents would effectively be voting to close their own parks.

Nevertheless, Homewood residents ended up voting in favor of the merger by a margin of six ballots on August 11, 1964, but the result was overturned by the Alabama Supreme Court on April 16, 1965 for lack of sufficient notice of the election.

Members of the committee named in a July 30, 1964 pamphlet included: Paul Huffstutler, Catherine Lackmond, L. E. Duncan, Sam Shaia, Paul Krebs, Dr & Mrs George Dennison, Ed Randle, Jack Rollins Jr, Happy Walker, Charles Lawrence, George Jesse, Mrs John Reardon, J. B. Owens, Mr & Mrs F. B. Burns, Mrs Paul Sternglanz, Mr & Mrs Roy Lockhart, Felix Lancaster, Mrs Alex Borders, Gordon Burton, C. W. Emerson, Frances Shaia, Mrs Don Cooper, John Burton, Mrs Robert Abelson, Mrs Robert Willingham, Douglas Wingo, Thomas Barnes, Wava Hardy, Mary Gullahorn, Hampton Smith, Mrs Homer Mawhinney Mrs Frank Dominick, J. Dozier Arnold, Mrs Frank Logan, W. J. Sullivan Jr, Robert Burns, James Adams, Mrs Brook Flowers, Jim Gazaway, Giles Baker and Mrs William Conwell.

References

• Whiting, Marvin Yeomans (1997) One Great City: The Campaign for Consolidated Government, Birmingham, Alabama, 1970-1971 Birmingham: Birmingham Public Library