My City July 2022

George C. Kellar 1917-18, 1919-20 Kellar served two non-consec utive terms as Flint’s mayor and could have served three straight had C. S. Mott not run in 1918. Born in 1879 in Tyler County, WV he graduated from West Virginia Wesleyan College in 1905 and then spent a year teaching at Harvard University. After arriving

Edwin W. Atwood 1920-22

Born in Flint to lumber and banking magnate William A. Atwood in 1875, Edwin grew up and spent his life a res ident of the city. His father was one of those in›uential city types, his reputa tion ›owed to and mirrored by his son in business and social life. Edwin spent the majority of his time in charity work and investments. He was a charter member of the Flint Golf Club and acted as president of the Flint Council for the

in Flint in 1908, Kellar opened the George C. Kellar & Brother real estate ‡rm with his brother, Francis M. Kellar. Kellar took an interest in local politics and in 1916 was elected alderman and president pro tempore of the Flint City Common Council. During his ‡rst mayoral term, Kellar looked to the future and ways to expand the city. With adjustments from C. S. Mott during his own term, Kellar accepted a new city plan in his second term that focused upon – among other things – increasing the size of Flint’s main streets, revamping school playgrounds, adding additional riverfront parks, and the construction of a down town civic center complete with walkable city hall, library, art gallery and more.“e design was that of the National Mall in Washington, D. C. Most of the 1920 plan did not come to fruition with some small exceptions, the most notable being the construction of a new high school.“e new Flint High School was built in 1923 (becoming Flint Central in later years). Another change of historical signi‡cance happened when Kellar had the original Flint arches removed to make way for city plan improvements. George C. Kellar died in 1954.

Boy Scouts of America. He donated to the building of Hurley Hospital and acted as secretary of the hospital board. He also relished the arts and followed in his family’s footsteps as a member of the Shakespeare Club. Edwin W. Atwood ‡rst ran for mayor in that crazy election of 1911 pit ting the Republican Atwood against Democrat William Wildanger and Socialist John A. C. Menton. Menton, in perhaps the biggest election upset in Flint history, won, causing Atwood to step away from political life for a time. In 1920, he made the decision to give it another try and emerged victorious. In 1912, Atwood met and befriended inventor Lloyd Copeman and provided most of the capital for Copeman’s Electric Stove Company and later, he invested in Copeman Laboratories Co. While in o¢ce, Atwood worked with Copeman to obtain patents on two separate refrigeration apparatus of which Atwood was the bene‡ciary. Additional ly, while in o¢ce, Atwood oversaw the opening of the Durant Hotel, and the Flint Amusement Park, now lost to time. After o¢ce, Atwood made his most recognizable contribution to the City of Flint when he donated his family’s land on Atwood Island to the city for the construction of an athletic stadium. Atwood Stadium (named after Edwin’s father) is still the premier athletic venue in the City of Flint. In his later years, Ed win Atwood donated a mosaic and wainscoting to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. He died in 1958 and was buried in Glenwood Cemetery. 

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