Editing George Roby Dempster (section)

===Knoxville politics===

Dempster, a lifelong [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], became actively involved in Knoxville politics during the 1920s.  In 1929, he was named city manager, a position created earlier in the decade.  After his appointment, he convinced the state legislature to merge the offices of city manager and mayor.  This move proved unpopular, and Dempster was defeated by W. W. Mynatt in the mayoral election of 1937.  Dempster continued to lead the opposition to Mynatt, forming an alliance with Knoxville businessman Cas Walker, who had a strong populist backing in the city.<ref name=wheeler />

During the 1930s, while city manager, Dempster began to clash with Guy Smith, Jr., editor of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]-leaning ''Knoxville Journal''.  Smith once stated that Dempster should be "relegated to the political ash heap and buried so deeply that one of his own Dumpsters can't dig him out."<ref name=wheeler />  Dempster, likewise, quietly ordered the police to scour the city for Smith's car, and tow it away if it was illegally parked (which it often was).  Smith ordered ''Journal'' photographers to crop Dempster from favorable group shots, and Dempster organized a raid that caught ''Journal'' owner Roy Lotspeich with a large supply of [[illegal whiskey]].<ref name=wheeler />

Running on an anti-tax platform, Dempster's allies managed to recapture the mayor's office in 1945, and Dempster was again appointed city manager.  Dempster broke his campaign pledge, and proposed new city property taxes.  This provoked the ire of Walker, who immediately mounted a campaign against Dempster.  Walker blasted Dempster's new taxes, and claimed that "gambling, whiskey and prostitution" flourished when Dempster was in power.<ref name=wheeler />  After Walker was elected mayor in 1946, Dempster resigned as city manager.  Walker's new city manager, Paul Morton, accused Dempster of [[cronyism]], and undid most of Dempster's contracts and pay raises.<ref name=wheeler />

Walker's term as mayor proved tumultuous, and Dempster's allies managed to oust Walker in a [[recall election]] in 1947.  Dempster was elected mayor in 1951.  His tenure was largely stagnant, as two major textile mills closed, and the downtown area declined with the rise of suburban shopping centers.  After he proposed a modest tax increase, Knoxvillians revolted, and voted him out of office in 1955.<ref name=wheeler />