John H. Eastman

Who was John H. Eastman?

John H. Eastman was a businessman who served from 1910–1914 as the mayor of Shreveport, the third largest city in Louisiana and the largest in the northwestern section of the state.

Eastman was born in Mansfield, the seat of DeSoto Parish and the site of the Battle of Mansfield in 1864 during the American Civil War. Eastman earned his living as a tinsmith. In 1898, he established the Vordenbauman-Eastman Hardware Company.

Eastman's mayoral term was the first under Shreveport's city commission government, in effect from 1910 to 1978, when it was replaced by the mayor-council format. Under his administration changes were made in street paving policies to improve the outcome at less cost. Eastman, a Democrat, worked to acquire the Cross Lake area at $1.00 per acre. Cross Lake is now the principal Shreveport municipal water source. Eastman also oversaw the enlargement of the Louisiana State Fair grounds and the construction of the grandstand. The fairgrounds are now located along Interstate 20. Eastman also worked to secure the construction of the traffic bridge over the Red River, which connects Shreveport with neighboring Bossier City. It opened in January 1915.