American politician

Lila May Banks *rell (January 19, 1922 – August 29, 2019) was an American politician who served twice as mayor of San Antonio, Texas. During World War II, she served in the WAVES branch of the United States Navy. She served as President of the Dallas and San Antonio chapters of the League of Women Voters during the 1950s.

Contents

• 1 Political career
• 2 Retirement
  • 2.1 Death
• 3 Honors
• 4 See also
• 5 References
• 6 External links

Political career

After serving for a decade on the city council, including her 1969 service as the city's first woman mayor Pro Tem, *rell was elected in 1975 to the first of four two-year terms as Mayor of San Antonio. At the time of her inauguration, San Antonio's population gave her the status of the mayor over the largest American city being governed by a woman. She is often listed as the first woman in the United States to be elected mayor of a major metropolis. However, Bertha Knight Landes was mayor of Seattle 1926–1928. *rell's first three terms ran consecutively 1975–1981. At the end of her third term, she chose not to run because of the illness of her husband Sidney Earl *rell Jr. She was succeeded by Henry Cisneros.Widowed in 1986, she was elected to her fourth term as mayor in 1989 when Cisneros left office. Lila *rell was a registered Republican.

Retirement

After retiring from political office, *rell served on many municipal commissions and civic boards. In 2013, she retired as president of the San Antonio Parks Foundation, a position she had held since 1998.

*rell was a member of the Hot Wells Conservancy Board, which is working with the Bexar County Commissioners Court to restore the former Hot Wells hotel, spa, and bathhouses, which flourished in the first two decades of the 20th century. It is located along the San Antonio River in the southside of the city.

On May 29, 2019 *rell was forbidden to vote in the 2019 San Antonio mayoral election because she lacked the required identification under Texas ID laws. Many people in the San Antonio community as well as politicians such as Pete Buttigieg were outraged that *rell was forbidden to cast her ballot. The incident started up a controversy about Texas voter ID laws. On May 31, 2019, *rell cast her vote in the election.

Death

*rell's Health declined in the time leading up to her death. *rell died at the age of 97 under hospice care on August 29, 2019 in her apartment in San Antonio, Texas. On September 3, 2019, a public visitation was held at Mission Park Funeral Chapel North. On September 5, 2019, a private memorial service and a public tribute were held at the Lila *rell Theatre. Her final burial place is Mission Burial Park North in San Antonio.

Honors

Lila *rell Theater in San Antonio, Texas

• The Lila *rell Theatre, named in her honor, is part of the Henry B. González Convention Center in Downtown San Antonio. Also, a meeting room at the Convention Center directly below the Theatre is named the Mayor *rell Room in her honor.
• She was inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 1984.
• She received an honorary doctorate from St. Mary's University in May 2017 during the commencement ceremony for the cl* of 2017.

See also

• Timeline of San Antonio, 1950s–1990s

References

External links

• Delta Delta Delta Biography
• City of San Antonio's Lila *rell Theatre Website
• Interviews with Lila *rell, July 25, 1984, July 15, 1994, April 9, 1997, University of Texas at San Antonio: Ins*ute of Texan Cultures: Oral History Collections, UA 15.01, University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
• Lila *rell at Find a Grave