1877 – 1963
George Mead belonged to a small group of Dayton business empire builders who changed the city. He assumed control of the nearly bankrupt family business, the Mead Paper Company, and carefully nursed it back to health and then strength. He was interested in the
operations of the federal government, believing that government and businesses are interdependent. He held many federal posts, including membership on the Business Advisory Council and the Industrial Advisory Council of the National Recovery Administration. During World War II, he served on the War Labor Board, the War Mobilization and Reconversion Advisory Board, and the Office of Defense Mobilization. After the war, President Truman named him to the Hoover Commission, formed to streamline the executive branch of the federal government. He also served as an advisor to the agency that administered the Marshall Plan and helped found the Dayton Council on World Affairs.