Frederick Kohler

Who was Frederick Kohler?

Frederick Kohler was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the 40th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio from 1922 to 1923. He was born in Cleveland to Christian and Fredericka Kohler. As a teenager, he left school to help his father in Kohler Stone Works. After his father's death, the business ended and Kohler sought work elsewhere.

In 1889, Kohler joined the police force and quickly rose to prominence. In 1900, he was promoted to captain and in 1903, Mayor Tom L. Johnson appointed Kohler as chief of police. He had a very brusque style of law enforcement and always expected the absolute maximum from all policemen, demanding a neat appearance and full day's work. While some, such as President Theodore Roosevelt, applauded him as "the country's finest chief of police", he was disliked by political partisans who disapproved of his contempt for political favoritism. After Johnson left the mayor's office in 1909, opposition forces began gathering up to rid the city of Kohler.