Ralph Crego, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetRalph Crego
Date of Birth: 02-Sep-1893
Place of Birth: Fife Lake, Michigan, United States
Date of Death: 28-May-1989
Profession: politician
Zodiac Sign: Virgo 
About Ralph Crego
- Ralph William Crego (September 2, 1893 – May 28, 1989) was an American politician who served as Mayor of Lansing, Michigan from 1943 to 1961.
- Crego was born at Fife Lake, Michigan, and moved to Lansing at age 21.
- He attended Lansing Business University and worked for Oldsmobile before joining the United States Marine Corps during World War I.
- After his military service, Crego opened a grocery store at 1016 W.
- Allegan in Lansing which he operated for 24 years.
- He was elected to the Lansing City Council in November 1935.Crego became acting mayor in August 1943 when Mayor Sam Street Hughes entered the military.
- In November 1943, he was elected Mayor by a margin of nearly five-to-one over his opponent.
- During his time as mayor, Lansing's population grew by more than 35% with a population of 78,753 in 1940 and 107,807 in 1960.
- Crego also oversaw construction of many city buildings as mayor, including City Hall, the police station, and four fire stations.
- In April 1961, he lost a bid for re-election by 62 votes (out of 28,087 ballots cast) but did not seek a recount.
- With nearly 18 years in office, he remains Lansing's longest-serving mayor.
- Crego was married for 71 years to his wife, Marjorie.
- They had four children.
- Two of their died from polio: Dwight (age 8 in 1928) and Mary Lou (age 10 in 1931).
- He was survived by his other two children, Joyce Hacker and David Crego.In 1970, at the unanimous urging of the Lansing City Council, the Lansing Park Board honored Crego by naming a large park in the Red Cedar basin, the largest park in the city, as Ralph W.
- Crego Park.
- By 1974, the park had expanded to 800 acres.
- The park was closed in 1986 after toxic waste was discovered; it remained closed for 28 years, reopening in 2014.Crego died in 1989 at age 95.
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