{{Short description|Mayor of Syracuse, New York, from 1914 to 1916}} {{Use American English|date=November 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Louis Will | image = Mayor Louis Will of Syracuse - Club men in caricature (IA cu31924028832628) (page 18 crop).jpg | caption = A political cartoon of Will, {{circa}} 1915 | party = Progressive Party | office = Mayor of Syracuse, New York | country = United States | order = 37th | occupation = Politician | preceded = Edward Schoeneck | succeeded = Walter Robinson Stone | birth_date = 1857 | death_date = {{death date|1932|7|15}} (aged 74) | birth_place = United States | death_place = Syracuse, New York | constituency = Syracuse, New York }}
'''Louis Will''' (1857 – July 15, 1932) was an American politician who served as mayor of Syracuse, New York, from 1914 to 1916. A member of the Progressive Party, he was the last third party candidate elected mayor of Syracuse until 2017.<ref name="goldberg">{{Cite web |last=Goldberg |first=Delen |date=2009-09-22 |title=Can a third-party candidate become Syracuse's mayor? Otis Jennings says yes |url=https://www.syracuse.com/news/2009/09/can_a_third-party_candidate_be.html |website=syracuse |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-11-08|title=Ben Walsh elected Syracuse mayor|url=https://www.syracuse.com/politics/2017/11/syracuse_mayor_results_winner_independent_ben_walsh_democrat_juanita_perez_willi.html|access-date=2021-07-19|website=syracuse|language=en}}</ref>
==Biography== ===Early life and career=== Born to German immigrants Anton and Rosina Will, he left school early after the death of his father to run the family candlemaking business, now known as Will & Baumer.<ref name="nrhptext">{{cite web |last=Opalka |first=Anthony |title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Louis Will House |url=http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=103037 |date=August 2009 |accessdate=2010-01-17 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111210080501/http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=103037 |archivedate=2011-12-10 }} and [http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=102976 ''Accompanying 20 photos, exterior and interior, from 2009 (captions on page 15 of text document)''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111210052151/http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=102976 |date=2011-12-10 }}</ref> ===Mayoralty=== Will sought the mayoralty on the Progressive Party ticket. In a year with low voter turnout, Will was elected with only 9,858 votes.<ref name="rubado">{{Cite web |last=Rubado |first=Meghan |date=2009-11-04 |title=Stephanie Miner elected Syracuse's first female mayor |url=https://www.syracuse.com/news/2009/11/stephanie_miner_elected_syracu.html |website=syracuse |language=en}}</ref> It was an incredibly close three-way race, with the Republican nominee receiving 9,459 votes and the Democratic nominee receiving 9,355 votes.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 20, 1939 |title=Louis Will, Progressive, Upsets Both Republicans and Democrats |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/syracuse-journal-louis-will-progressive/184282397/ |access-date=November 3, 2025 |work=Syracuse Journal |pages=57}}</ref> thumb|left|top|upright=.5|The flag of Syracuse adopted during Will's tenure Will urged Syracuse to adopt a flag in the wake of other cities, such as San Francisco and Providence, adopting flags. After many delays and rejected designs, a flag was adopted on December 6, 1915. The Syracuse Common Council passed a resolution praising Will for the "patriotic public spirit" with which he encouraged the flag's creation. Many were left disappointed with the flag and it was described as "objectively ugly".<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 11, 2023 |title=A century-old debacle: The messy tale of how Syracuse wound up with its city flag |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-post-standard-a-century-old-debacle/174589781/ |access-date=June 15, 2025 |work=The Post-Standard |pages=I8–I9}}</ref> ===Death=== Will died on July 15, 1932, at the age of 74.<ref>{{cite news|title=Louis Will, Former Syracuse Mayor, Dies|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/poughkeepsie-eagle-news-louis-will-form/174544574/|work=Poughkeepsie Eagle-News |access-date=June 15, 2025|date=July 16, 1932|page=1}}</ref>
==Legacy== His home, the Louis Will House, a large Queen Anne-style brick house, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2009-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf |title=Announcements and actions on properties for the National Register of Historic Places |date=November 20, 2009 |access-date=December 1, 2009 |work=Weekly Listings |publisher=National Park Service}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Will, Louis}} Category:20th-century mayors of places in New York (state) Category:Mayors of Syracuse, New York Category:New York (state) Progressives (1912) Category:1857 births Category:1932 deaths
{{NewYork-mayor-stub}}