1922
Seth
2013
Seth Taft
December 31, 1922 — April 14, 2013
Seth Chase Taft, a former Cuyahoga County Commissioner and grandson of a U.S. president, died Sunday at his home in Pepper Pike after a recent fall. He was 90.
Taft, who is survived by his wife Frances, four children and 10 grandchildren, might best be remembered locally for his narrow loss to Carl Stokes in the 1967 Cleveland mayor's race.
In that race, Taft refused to resort to race-based politics during that election, fearing it would tear the city apart.
Bob Bennett, who managed that campaign, called Taft, "One of the real decent people in politics. He had a God-given talent to help people. He thought the world could be a better place and that government could better."
Stokes and his family later praised Taft for his integrity and honesty.
"In ways profound and enduring, Seth Taft was a man ahead of his time," said former Plain Dealer Editorial page editor Brent Larkin in a February column.
Larkin was writing not only about the mayoral election but Taft's early efforts to push for regionalization of government services, something Taft believed would improve efficiency and reduce costs for municipalities.
By the time voters approved a new charter reforming county government in 2009, Taft was already suffering from the effects of Alzheimer's disease.
But Judy Rawson, former mayor of Shaker Heights, who contributed to the reform effort, called Taft "one of the fathers" of the reform movement, according to Larkin's column.
Taft's son Rick, a Pepper Pike councilman who lives two doors from his parents, said his father managed to strike a "pretty extraordinary balance" between being a natural politician and family man.
Seth Taft campaigning for Cleveland mayor in 1967. Michael Evans, The Plain Dealer
Taft, a Republican, served as a Cuyahoga County Commissioner from 1971 to 1978, and was the son of Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Taft. He was the nephew of U.S. Senator Robert Taft.
After graduating from Yale Law School, Taft and his wife, Frances, came to Cleveland in the late 1940s rather than settling in Cincinnati, where the family name adorned buildings and more. He spent his entire legal career of more than 40 years at Jones Day (then Jones Day, Reavis & Pogue.)
Besides mayoral race, Taft also lost a bid for governor after being dubbed too "liberal" of a Republican.
Rick Taft said his father left family members with scads of handcrafted wooden household items that he gave as Christmas gifts. He also did all of the interior carpentry on his home of 60 years.
In his later years, Taft learned to appreciate art and travel, going to Mexico more than a dozen times. "This was a wonderful, balanced life," Rick Taft said.
Please cut and past the following link in your browser to view this link about Seth Taft:
http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/02/at_90_seth_taft_still_embodies.html
PDF Printable Version
Taft, who is survived by his wife Frances, four children and 10 grandchildren, might best be remembered locally for his narrow loss to Carl Stokes in the 1967 Cleveland mayor's race.
In that race, Taft refused to resort to race-based politics during that election, fearing it would tear the city apart.
Bob Bennett, who managed that campaign, called Taft, "One of the real decent people in politics. He had a God-given talent to help people. He thought the world could be a better place and that government could better."
Stokes and his family later praised Taft for his integrity and honesty.
"In ways profound and enduring, Seth Taft was a man ahead of his time," said former Plain Dealer Editorial page editor Brent Larkin in a February column.
Larkin was writing not only about the mayoral election but Taft's early efforts to push for regionalization of government services, something Taft believed would improve efficiency and reduce costs for municipalities.
By the time voters approved a new charter reforming county government in 2009, Taft was already suffering from the effects of Alzheimer's disease.
But Judy Rawson, former mayor of Shaker Heights, who contributed to the reform effort, called Taft "one of the fathers" of the reform movement, according to Larkin's column.
Taft's son Rick, a Pepper Pike councilman who lives two doors from his parents, said his father managed to strike a "pretty extraordinary balance" between being a natural politician and family man.
Seth Taft campaigning for Cleveland mayor in 1967. Michael Evans, The Plain Dealer
Taft, a Republican, served as a Cuyahoga County Commissioner from 1971 to 1978, and was the son of Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Taft. He was the nephew of U.S. Senator Robert Taft.
After graduating from Yale Law School, Taft and his wife, Frances, came to Cleveland in the late 1940s rather than settling in Cincinnati, where the family name adorned buildings and more. He spent his entire legal career of more than 40 years at Jones Day (then Jones Day, Reavis & Pogue.)
Besides mayoral race, Taft also lost a bid for governor after being dubbed too "liberal" of a Republican.
Rick Taft said his father left family members with scads of handcrafted wooden household items that he gave as Christmas gifts. He also did all of the interior carpentry on his home of 60 years.
In his later years, Taft learned to appreciate art and travel, going to Mexico more than a dozen times. "This was a wonderful, balanced life," Rick Taft said.
Please cut and past the following link in your browser to view this link about Seth Taft:
http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/02/at_90_seth_taft_still_embodies.html
PDF Printable Version
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