8th ward, Chicago

Last updated

8th Ward - Chicago
Ward
Ward 8
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
County Cook
CityChicago
Established1847
Communitieslist
Government
 • TypeWard
 • Body Chicago City Council
 • Alderperson Michelle A. Harris (Democratic Party)
Website

The 8th Ward is one of the 50 aldermanic wards with representation in the City Council of Chicago, Illinois.

Contents

History

The ward was created on February 16, 1847, when the number of wards in the city increased from six to nine. [1] This expansion responded to a rapidly growing population and changing city governance needs. Initially, each ward, including the 8th, elected two aldermen to the city council. This system remained until reforms in 1923, after which wards have been represented by a single alderperson, a practice that continues today. [2]

Over the years, the boundaries of the 8th Ward have changed multiple times due to shifts in population and political redistricting, aiming to maintain equal representation across wards. Historically, early aldermen from this ward included figures like Francis Hoffmann, who later became Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, and John Comiskey, part of a prominent local political family.

In recent decades, notable representatives have included William D. Meyering, William Cousins (a judge and reform advocate), Todd Stroger (who later became president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners), and the current alderperson Michelle A. Harris, who has served since 2006. The ward has consistently reflected key political and demographic trends in Chicago’s South Side.. [2]

Past alders

The current alderperson for the 8th ward is Michelle A. Harris, who has represented the ward since 2006.

Before 1923

Before 1923, wards were represented by two aldermen.

Aldermen# CouncilAldermen
AldermanTerm in officePartyNotesCiteAldermanTerm in officePartyNotesCite
James Lane1847–1849 [1] 11thWilliam B. Snowhook1847–1848 [1]
12thWilliam B. Herrick1848–1850 [1]
Henry R. Payson1849–1850 [1] 13th
John C. Dodge1850–1852 [1] 14thGeorge F. Foster1850–1851Previously served in 6th ward [1]
15thRobert Malcolm1851–1853 [3]
Andrew J. Brown1852–1854 [1] 16th
17th  Hoffmann photo 1860s (3x4).jpg Francis Hoffmann 1853–1854 Democratic [1]
William H. Stickney 1854–1855 [4] 18th
B.W. Thomas1854–1855 [1] [4]
Samuel Ashton 1855–1856 [1] [4] 19thStephen D. LaRue1855–1858 [1]
Conrad L. Niehoff1856–1857 [1] 20th
Christian Wahl 1.jpg Christian Wahl 1857–1861 [1] 21st
22ndAndrew Wright1858–1860 [1]
23rd
24thRedmond Prindiville1860–1862 [1]
W.G. White1861–1862 [5] 25th
Charles L. Woodman 1862–1863Redistricted to 16th ward in 1863 [1] 26th Redmond Sheridan 1863Redistricted from 10th ward [1]
Francis J. Ullbrich1863–1864Redistricted from 10th ward [1]
Richard Clark1863–1865 [1] 27th
28th Patrick Rafferty 1864–1869 [5]
M.L. Frisbee1865–1867 [1] 29th
30th
  John Comiskey 1 (a).jpg John Comiskey 1867–1869 Democratic Previously served in 10th and 7th wards; redistricted to 9th ward in 1869 [1] 31st
32nd
33rd
  James H. Hildreth sketch, Chicago Tribune, 1886 (1).png James H. Hildreth 1869–1870 Democratic Redistricted from 7th ward [1] [6] 34thWilliam S. Powell1869–1871 [1]
Michael B. Bailey1870–1874 [1] 35th
36thJeremiah Clowry1871–1873 [1]
37th
38th  James H. Hildreth sketch, Chicago Tribune, 1886 (1).png James H. Hildreth 1873–1876 Democratic Redistricted to 7th ward in 1876 [1] [6]
Patrick C. McDonald1874–1875 [1] 39th
  Frank Lawler (1).jpg Frank Lawler 1876–1886 Democratic Later elected alderman again in 1895 in 19th ward [1] [7] 40thJames O'Brien1876–1877Previously served in 9th ward [1]
41stRichard M. Oliver1877–1879 [1]
42nd
43rd  Thomas Purcell 1879–1885 Democratic [1] [7]
44th
45th
46th
47th
48th
49th  Redmond F. Sheridan sketch, Chicago Tribune, 1887 (1).png Redmond F. Sheridan 1885–1888 Democratic Redistricted to 19th ward in 1888 [1] [6]
  Lawrence A. Yore sketch, Chicago Tribune, 1886 (1).png Lawrence A. Yore1886–1888 Republican [1] [6] 50th
51st
  Charles A. Monear 1888–1889 Independent Democrat Redistricted from 6th ward [1] [8] 52ndJoseph M. Weber1888–1889Redistricted from 7th ward [1]
George F. Bunker1889–1891 [1] 53rdFrank J. Dvorak1889–1892 [1]
54th
Martin Morrison alderman circa 1899 (3x4).jpg Martin Morrison1891–1895 [1] 55th
58th  Wm Loeffler.png William Loeffler 1892–1894 Democratic [1]
57th
58th Frank Slepicka1894–1896 Democratic [1] [9]
John Bennett1895–1899 [1] 59th
60thFrank Meek1896–1898 [1]
61st
62nd  Edward J. Novak 1898–1901 Democratic Redistricted to 10th ward in 1901 [1] [10]
Michael S. Garry1899–1901 [1] 63rd
64th
  John Hugh Jones.jpg John Hugh Jones 1901–1906 Republican Redistricted from 33rd ward [1] [10] 65th Patrick Henry Moynihan (US Congressman from Illinois).jpg P. H. Moynihan 1901–1909 [1]
66th
67rd
68th
69th
John S. Derpa 1906–1908 [1] 70th
71st
  John Hugh Jones.jpg John Hugh Jones 1908–1910 Republican [1] [10] 72nd
73rd  John R. Emerson 1909–1915 Democratic [1] [11]
John S. Derpa 1910–1912 [1] 74th
75th
Ernest M. Cross 1912–1917Later elected alderman again in 1923 in 10th ward [1] 76th
77th
78th
79th John E. Tyden1915–1917 Republican [1] [11]
80th
  Ross A. Woodhull 1917–1923 Democratic [1] [12] 81st—
82nd  Martin S. Furman 1918–1923 Democratic [1] [12]
83rd
84th
85th
86th

Since 1923

Since 1923, wards have been represented by a single alderman. Elections have also been nonpartisan, though officeholders often still publicly affiliate with parties.

AlderpersonTerm in officePartyNotesCite
William D. Meyering in 1925 (1).jpg William D. Meyering 1923–1930  Democratic [1] [13]
David L. Sutton   Democratic [1] [13]
Michael F. Mulcahy
Roy E. Olin
Einar Johnson
James A. Condon
William Cousins 1967–1976  Democratic
Marian Humes
Keith Caldwell
Lorraine Dixon Died in office
Todd Stroger 2001–2006  Democratic Appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley. Subsequently won election. Resigned in order to assume office as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners
Michelle A. Harris 2006–present  Democratic Appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley, subsequently has won election to several terms

Demographics

Electoral history

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 "Centennial List of Mayors, City Clerks, City Attorneys, City Treasurers, and Aldermen, elected by the people of the city of Chicago, from the incorporation of the city on March 4, 1837 to March 4, 1937, arranged in alphabetical order, showing the years during which each official held office". Archived from the original on September 4, 2018. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Wards of Chicago in 1900 Part 5—Seventh & Eighth Wards". chicagology.com. Retrieved July 29, 2025.
  3. ↑ Moses, John (1895). History of Chicago, Illinois, Volume 1. Munsell & Company. p. 133. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 Andreas, Alfred Theodore (1884). History of Chicago Volume 1. Arno Press. pp. 184–185. ISBN   978-0-405-06845-4 . Retrieved December 26, 2020.{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  5. 1 2 Andreas, Alfred Theodore (1885). History of Chicago: From 1857 until the fire of 1871. Higginson Book Company. pp. 49–50. ISBN   9780832857249 . Retrieved July 12, 2020.{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Roll of the New Council, Including Holding-Over Aldermen and Those Elected Yesterday". Chicago Tribune. April 7, 1886. Retrieved July 20, 2020– via Newspapers.com.
  7. 1 2 Andreas, Alfred Theodore (1886). History of Chicago: From the fire of 1871 until 1885. A. T. Andreas. pp. 101–102, 865–870.
  8. ↑ Politics and Politicians of Chicago: Cook County, and Illinois. Memorial Volume, 1787-1887. A Complete Record of Municipal, County, State and National Politics from the Earliest Period to the Present Time. And an Account of the Haymarket Massacre of May 4, 1886, and the Anarchist Trials. Blakely Printing Company. 1886. p. 515. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  9. ↑ "All Fond of the Council" . The Chicago Chronicle. January 27, 1896. Retrieved July 1, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  10. 1 2 3 "Board of Aldermen in Chicago Played a Role in Iroquois Theater Fire". www.iroquoistheater.com. Retrieved November 30, 2024.
  11. 1 2 "Council Makeup Vital Problem M. V. L. Warning" . Chicago Tribune. March 31, 1915. Retrieved November 29, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  12. 1 2 "The Common Council Full List of Aldermen Composing the Governing Body of the City of Chicago" . Chicago Eagle at Newspapers.com. March 1, 1919. Retrieved December 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  13. 1 2 "Final Results on Aldermen" . Chicago Tribune. Vol. 82, no. 81C. April 4, 1923. p. 4. Retrieved April 7, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.