The pharmacy student hailed from humble beginnings in Hartford as his mother raised him while on welfare. After becoming an active voice for civil rights in his hometown, Milner was urged by friends to run for office. Milner’s first run for a State House seat was lost by just three votes and soured the young leader temporarily. However, he was pushed to run again and won in 1978. Two years later, Milner was elected mayor and served a single term.
Milner was not only the first Black mayor of Hartford, but also the first Black mayor in all of New England. His win helped prime voters for the election of the city’s first Black female mayor, Carrie Saxon Perry.
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Little Known Black History Fact: Black Mayor Firsts was originally published on blackamericaweb.com
