Dempster was named a delegate to the 1956 Democratic National Convention in Chicago , although he largely retired from city politics after his defeat in 1955 . He later rejoined his old nemesis Cas Walker in a successful attempt to thwart city-county consolidation , which was soundly rejected by Knoxville and Knox County voters in a 1959 referendum . Dempster died of a heart attack on September 18 , 1964 . Over one thousand mourners , among them U.S. senators Al Gore , Sr. , and Herbert S. Walters , crowded into the St. James Episcopal Church for Dempster 's funeral . He was buried next to his wife in Greenwood Cemetery
1956 Democratic National Convention
1956 Democratic National Convention
George Roby Dempster