Alberta Pappas

As I write this, all the news (whether it’s fit to print or not) is about the elections of 2024.

I am not going to write about politics or anything else quite as controversial. I am, however, going to write about something that does have local historical merit. One of the results of elections held 60 years ago — waaaaay back in 1964 — was the arrival of Alberta Pappas (at least politically).

Alberta was born in 1915 in Missouri; a year later her family moved to this area and lived in Blairsburg and the Woolstock area for some years before moving to Webster City in 1926. Alberta attended Woolstock and Webster City schools. In 1938 she married George Pappas in Eldora and the two began a couple of decades owning cafes in Webster City. The two owned and operated The People’s Cafe from 1938 to 1943; a year later they bought The Minute Cafe and operated it until they retired in 1956.

In August of 1962, Alberta was appointed to fill a vacant City Council position here for a 16-month term. She then successfully ran for a full term on the Council and served from 1963 to the end of 1971.

She was the first woman City Council member in Webster City history and served as mayor in 1964 and 1965, another first.

Just after her time as mayor, her husband, George, passed in January of 1966.

Following her time on the City Council, Alberta was elected to the hospital board in 1972 and served three full six-year terms. She was the chairman of the board in 1980 and 1981. In 1979, another woman, Audrey Warland, won the election to City Council. She was overheard telling Alberta, “I couldn’t have done it if you hadn’t done such a good job.”

Alberta lived a full and very community-oriented life. Along with her political victory and the time well spent on the hospital board, she was also involved in the Webster City Women’s Club (and served as president), she was president of the Hamilton County Republican Women’s Organization and was a crew leader for the U.S. Census Bureau for Hamilton County.

Another timely side note is that in 1964, as well, the local waterworks were celebrated when Mayor Pappas proclaimed a week in May as “Water Works Week for Webster City.” It had been since 1931 that the original water filters for the city had been operating; they were reconstructed and two additional filters were added to double the flow of clean water to the residents and businesses of the city.

This part of the column might not completely relate … but it’s sure interesting to this historian and made 1964 a “watershed” year for Webster City.

Alberta passed in November of 1998 and joined her husband in Our Neighborhood.

Our Neighborhood is a column by Michael Eckers focusing on the men and women whose presence populates Graceland Cemetery in Webster City.

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