Roy Butler

Roy Anderson Butler, Sr. (March 31, 1926 – November 13, 2009), was an American politician and businessman who served as the 47th mayor of Austin from 1971 to 1975.

Butler was the first Austin mayor directly elected by city voters. Prior to his 1971 election, Austin mayors had been appointed by the Austin City Council. He was the only child of his mother, a homemaker, and his father, an officer in the United States Army.

Butler served in the United States Navy during World War II. He was handily re-elected for a second two-year term as mayor in 1973, when he received almost 44,000 votes. This total from 1973 still holds the record for most votes ever cast for any Austin mayoral candidate in history, as of 2019. , but rather for Michael Butler, the founder of the Elgin-Butler Brick Company.

Later life Butler was a strong advocate of law enforcement.

In memoriam On November 3, 2011, the Austin City Council, in recognition of Roy Butler's civil service and contributions to the community and City of Austin, including the revitalization and improvement of Lady Bird Lake (formerly Town Lake), approved a resolution naming the "hike and bike trail" surrounding Lady Bird Lake in downtown Austin as the "Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail."