Herb Bergson, former mayor of Duluth and Superior, dies at 65

DULUTH - Herb Bergson, the only person to serve as mayor of both Twin Ports cities, died early Thursday morning at age 65 of complications from cancer surgery. He had been diagnosed with kidney cancer within the past year, according to his brother Brian Bergson.

Herb Bergson, a former investigator for the Superior Police Department, was mayor of the Wisconsin city from 1987-1995 and followed up with a single term in neighboring Duluth from 2004-2008. It's a rare political distinction for the region.

"I'm the only one and I'm proud of it," Bergson said in a 2019 episode of "Simply Superior," a public-affairs program that airs on Wisconsin Public Radio stations in northeastern Wisconsin — seemingly the politician's final interview.

During his time in office, Bergson was known for his commitment to the gay and lesbian community and causes. He was Duluth's first mayor to recognize the annual Duluth-Superior Pride Festival — a sharp contrast to the previous mayor, Gary Doty, who refused to acknowledge the event during his tenure.

Signing the first mayoral proclamation for the event was the accomplishment Bergson was most proud of, his brother said.

"My brother Herb was my hero," Brian Bergson said in an e-mail. "He was kind and the happiest when he was helping others."

Tamara Jones, who was co-chair of the event during the early 2000s, said in a written statement that Bergson's nod made it possible for the committee to expand the festival to include a mayor's reception and celebration at Bayfront Festival Park.

"I remember when we were able to hang the giant rainbow flag from the Bayfront stage and how amazing it was to see it from the Hillside and waving proudly throughout the city," Jones said. "We would not have been able to do that without Herb's support.

"Herb was a champion and an icon and the LGBTQAI+ flame is dimmed with his loss."

In 2005 Bergson crashed into a guardrail on Hwy. 53 near Spooner, Wis., and was charged with drunken driving. It was the start of what would be public troubles with alcohol and his break from politics followed. Bergson was the incumbent Duluth mayor when he lost to Charlie Bell in the 2007 primary election — a race that started with 11 names on the ballot and ended with Don Ness as mayor.

Bergson had three prior drunken-driving charges when he ran into a tree with his minivan in rural Wisconsin in 2018. He left the scene of the crash and officers found him at his nearby cabin in Lake Nebagamon. On "Simply Superior," Bergson was candid about his continued drinking and the way it quelled his anxiety. He had given away his car by then, he told host Robin Washington.

Ness remembered his predecessor as empathetic, a champion for the marginalized and misunderstood.

"At his best, Herb was a gifted politician," Ness said in an e-mail. "He had a big heart and he loved any sort of connection with people — whether working the room at a senior lunch, waving at cars for hours at a time or his innate ability to engage in deep and meaningful conversation."

Bergson also had a flair for the dramatic, Ness said.

"He was always looking for big, bold and creative ways to bring attention to the cause," he said. "I'll remember Herb in those moments. He was in his element, with a twinkle in his eye."

Portraits of past Duluth mayors have historically hung at City Hall. It took more than four years for Bergson to agree to let his own likeness hang among them. He said at the time that he didn't think it was worth hundreds of dollars of taxpayers' money just for his own gratification.

He eventually accepted donations from friends and contributed some of his own cash — and he wore a pink triangle pin in the portrait, he said at the time, to recognize Duluth's gay community.