Thomas Urling Walker was born January 31, 1925 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of Thomas Algeo and Clara Elizabeth Urling Walker.
He joined the U. S. Army Air Corps in 1943 and became an aircraft mechanic. He served in the Asian-Pacific Theater during World War II. Upon returning from the war, he attended Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania and then transferred to Case Institute of Technology in Cleveland, Ohio where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering in 1951.
After graduation, Mr. Walker was hired by the New York Air Brake Company in Watertown and worked there for ten years. He later taught as an Associate Professor of Engineering at Jefferson Community College (JCC) from 1961 to 1968.
He held a number of leadership positions in local civic organizations and was elected as Mayor of Watertown in 1983 and served two terms from 1984 to 1991. Throughout his tenure, he led the City through unprecedented change and growth, namely during the reactivation of the 10th Mountain Division in the mid-1980s. This growth also included the expansion of the City’s water and wastewater treatment plants as well as new housing development throughout the City. In addition, he guided, authored and is credited with the power purchase agreement with Niagara Mohawk (now National Grid), which is responsible for generating millions of dollars for the City annually.
Mr. Walker served as interim City Manager from September 1994 to December 1995. He also was chairman of CREG Systems and trustee of JCC and the JCC Foundation, as well as on the boards of many organizations including New York Casualty Insurance, WNPE/WNPI Public Television and Neighbors of Watertown (NOW).
Mr. Walker and his wife Mabel Brooks Walker each received the Israel A. Shapiro Citizenship Award, given annually to an outstanding citizen of Watertown; Mr. Walker in 1974 and Mrs. Walker in 1988. They also received Outstanding Citizen Awards from the State University College at Potsdam, New York as well as many other community recognitions.
The couple had four children, Winifred “Wendy” Grace Walker, Constance “Connie” Louise Walker Monroe, Laurel “Laurie” Walker Pike and T. Urling “Tom” Walker Jr.
Mayor Walker passed away at his home on Ives Street January 3, 2023 at the age of 97.
