Clarence O. Sherrill

Clarence O. Sherrill (May 24, 1876 – February 6, 1959) was an American military officer, city manager, and lobbyist. The son of a North Carolina politician and Civil War veteran, Sherrill attended colleges in his home state before transferring to the United States Military Academy (West Point), graduating with a degree in civil engineering. During the next decade, Sherrill briefly served as a military aide to President Theodore Roosevelt and was stationed in the Philippines and several U.S. cities. During World War I, Sherrill was stationed in France where he led the 302d Engineers. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel and awarded the Croix de Guerre and Distinguished Service Medal.

In 1921, Sherrill moved to Washington, D.C., where he served as chief military aide to President Warren G. Harding and later President Calvin Coolidge. He was appointed director of the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds, overseeing a large number of departments and construction projects. When one of these projects, the Lincoln Memorial, was dedicated, Sherrill was responsible for having the audience segregated. He implemented this racist policy in various parks, public pools, and golf courses throughout the city. He retired from the military and left his role in Washington, D.C., in 1925, then moved to Ohio, where he served as Cincinnati's first city manager. In the 1930s, Sherrill was vice president of the Kroger Grocery and Baking Company and president of the American Retail Federation (later merged into the National Retail Federation). He later resumed his role as city manager of Cincinnati and retired in 1944. Sherrill and his wife, Gerladine, had two children. The couple died in the 1950s and were buried in Arlington National Cemetery.