1980-1981 Clarksville and Montgomery County Consolidation Charter

Upon graduating law school at the University of Tennessee in 1971, Ross H. Hicks served the city of Clarksville as a partner at the law firm Cunningham, Mitchell, Hicks and Wedemeyer. Running unopposed, Hicks served as the chairperson for the Clarksville Montgomery County Metropolitan Charter Commission in 1980-1981, and he would have served as the president of the Clarksville Area Chamber of Commerce had the commission’s proposed charter not been rejected by the public in February 1981.

Hicks and prominent members of the Metro Charter Commission aimed to streamline local government through consolidation, as Hicks believed that Clarksville and Montgomery County would operate more efficiently as one governing body. Effectively, the commission’s proposed charter removed duplicate government positions in the interest of making local government more economical. Hicks’s interest in civic affairs stemmed from his background as an attorney, and Hicks’s former position as a deacon at First Presbyterian Church, a prominent local institution, prepared him for a leadership position with the Charter Commission.

The proposed charter was met with hesitation, as citizens believed that government consolidation would mean government intrusion. However, Hicks and the Charter Commission remained adamant that consolidation in Clarksville-Montgomery County would have the same positive effect as the Nashville and Davidson County consolidation of 1962. The proposed charter took influence from Davidson-Nashville’s modernized structure of government, but Clarksville was ultimately unwilling to depart from the established governmental structure.

After the unsuccessful bid for government consolidation, Hicks continued his law practice. Notably, he served as a judge for the Nineteenth Circuit Court of Tennessee, a position he held from 2002 to 2021. After 40 years of public service, Hicks announced his retirement in February 2021.