Who was Clyde Potts??

 

What is it that the Clyde Potts Reservoir, Morristown National Historic Park , and Morristown Airport all have in common?  They each owe their existence to Clyde Potts.  Clyde Potts was a nationally recognized person in our area, serving as Mayor of Morristown for well over twenty years and the project engineer for the reservoir project.

 

·        Clyde Potts was born in 1876 in Iowa .  His mother died when he was 4, his father when he was 8, so he was raised by an older sister, Margaret, who died in 1921.

 

·        After high school in Iowa , he was graduated from Cornell University in 1901.

 

·        Mr. Potts was a prominent Civil Engineer, with offices in New York City .   He specialized in sanitary work and led many sewerage and water supply projects for Morristown , Jersey City , other NJ communities, other states, and even foreign projects including Athens Greece , Havana Cuba , and Peru .  He was a nationally recognized expert who wrote and presented notable papers on the engineering profession’s role in society and on water supply strategies.

 

·        Mr. Potts had many affiliations and memberships with major engineering and professional

organizations and honor societies, was a member of the Sons of the

American Revolution, and 33rd degree Mason.

                                                                                        

·        Mr. Potts moved to Morristown in 1921, having become familiar with the town after performing engineering for a sewer project there.  He initially served on the school board, but in a short time became Mayor.

 

·        Clyde Potts served a remarkable total of 24-years as the Mayor of Morristown across many terms from 1922 – 1948, in some cases being endorsed by both the Republican and Democratic parties and running unopposed.  During his watch, roads, schools, sports programs, and parks were improved.

 

·        His interest in history led to the idea of a National Historical Park , becoming the Morristown National Historic Park (which encompasses Jockey Hollow and Washington ’s Headquarters / Ford Mansion ).  This first national historic park was approved under President Hoover and dedicated under President Franklin D. Roosevelt).  The park preserved historic treasures that were at imminent risk of being lost forever.

 

·        While serving with the NJ State Health Department, Mr. Potts helped establish the State-funded Bureau of Child Hygiene, which successfully reduced infant death rates in New Jersey and became a model for other states to follow.

 

·        His interest in aviation and his peripatetic nature led to the creation of Morristown Airport .

 

·        Clyde Potts died in his home in 1950 at the age of 73.  A Daily Record editorial said, “A friendly, even-tempered man, he was an indefatigable worker in the fields that most interested him - - history and good government.  …If ever a man deserves an immediate place in the heavenly ranks it should be Clyde Potts, for the service he rendered mankind while on earth.”

 

·        Through the reservoir that was named after him, national historic parks including Morristown National Historic Park, Morristown Airport, and the many people who are alive today because of the successful child hygiene program, Clyde Potts’ influence upon our lives is still felt every day.

 

 

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