Great Living Cincinnatians: Honorees

William Safford began his career in public life when he rose from deputy superintendent to superintendent of insurance for the State of Ohio in 1927. At age 25 he was the youngest man ever to hold that position. He joined Western and Southern Life Insurance in 1928 as a vice president, became president in 1956 and chairman in 1973.

Safford was a founder of the original group that established Cincinnati’s downtown development program in the 1950s. His most impressive mark on downtown Cincinnati has been the 580 Building at Sixth and Walnut. This structure has been widely declared by architects and other experts as downtown’s finest new building in terms of both function and form.

In the 1960s the life insurance industry nationwide, with Safford as a leader, committed to provide funds for the rehab of housing for low and moderate income families. Western-Southern was one of the first companies to start honoring this commitment and initiated what is believed to be the first FHA rehab project in the nation on LeRoy Court in Mt. Auburn. Under his leadership, Western-Southern extended its investment in rehabilitating low-income housing throughout Greater Cincinnati and the nation.

Safford’s other civic contributions include his current service on the Board of Regents for the State of Ohio and his position as a trustee of Ohio State University from 1963 to 1971.