Boston City Council | |
---|---|
Type | |
Type | |
Houses | Boston Board of Aldermen Boston Common Council |
History | |
Founded | May 1, 1822 |
Disbanded | 1909 |
Preceded by | Boston Board of Selectmen |
Succeeded by | Boston City Council (unicameral) |
Seats | Changed over time |
Constitution | |
Boston City Charter (1822) |
From 1822 until 1909, Boston's legislative body was bicameral, with a Board of Aldermen that was elected at-large and a much larger Common Council that was elected from multi-member electoral districts (wards). This city legislature was replaced in 1909 with the unicameral body that is the modern Boston City Council.
Prior to 1822, Boston was governed by the Boston Board of Selectmen. Boston voted in 1822 to incorporate as a city and adopted the Boston City Charter. On May 1, 1822, the Boston Board of Selectmen ceremonially handed over the city to the new government consisting of the newly-established City Council and the newly-established mayoralty. [1]
Under this original Boston City Charter, between 1822 and 1909, the city's legislative body was bicameral. This legislature, known as the Boston City Council, consisted of a Board of Aldermen that was elected at-large and a much larger Common Council with members that was elected from multi-member wards. [2] [3] [4] This Boston City Council existed along with a mayoralty that was established by the charter. [2]
After the Boston City Charter was rewritten in 1909, the Boston City Council was recreated as a nine-member unicameral body. [3]
The Common Council was led by a president. The following table chronologically lists the tenures of individuals in this position:
Presidents of the Boston Common Council (1822–1909) [5] | |
---|---|
Name | Tenure |
William Prescott Jr. | 1822 |
John Welles | 1823 |
Francis Johonnot Oliver | 1824–1825 |
John Richardson Adan | 1826–1828 |
Elliphalet Williams | 1829 |
Benjamin T. Pickman | 1830–1831 |
John P. Bigelow | 1832 |
Josiah Quincy Jr. | 1834–1836 |
Philip Marett | 1837–1840 |
Edward Blake | 1841–1843 |
Peleg Chandler | 1844–1845 |
George Stillman Hillard | 1846–1847 |
Benjamin Seaver | 1847–1849 |
Francis Brinley | 1850–1851 |
Henry Gardner | 1852–1853 |
Alexander H. Rice | 1854 |
Joseph Story | 1855 |
Oliver Stevens | 1856–1857 |
Samuel Wallace Waldron | 1858 |
Josiah Putnam Bradlee | 1859–1860 |
Joseph Hildreth Bradley | 1861 |
Joshua Dorsey Ball | 1862 |
George Silsbee Hale | 1863–1864 |
William Bentley Fowle Jr. | 1865 |
Joseph Story | 1866 |
Weston Lewis | 1867 |
Charles Hastings Allen | 1868 |
William Giles Harris | 1869 |
Melville E. Ingalls | 1870 |
Matthias Rich | 1871 |
Marquis Fayette Dickinson Jr. | 1872 |
Edward Olcott Shepard | 1873–1874 |
Halsey J. Boardman | 1875 |
John Q. A. Brackett | 1876 |
Benjamin Pope | 1877–1878 |
William Henry Whitmore | 1879 |
Harvey Newton Shepard | 1880 |
Andrew Jackson Bailey | 1881 |
Charles Edward Pratt | 1881–1882 |
James Joseph Flynn | 1883 |
John Henry Lee | 1884 |
Edward John Jenkins | 1885–1886 |
David Franklin Barry | 1886–1888 |
Horace G. Allen | 1889–1890 |
David Frankin Barry | 1891 |
Christopher Francis O'Brien | 1894–1895 |
Joseph A. Conry | 1896–1897 |
Timothy Lawrence Connolly | 1898 |
Daniel Joseph Kiley | 1899–1901 |
Arthur Walter Dolan | 1902–1905 |
William John Barrett | 1906–1907 |
Leo F. McCullough | 1908 |
George C. McCabe | 1909 [6] |
Gallery of Presidents of the Boston Common Council (partial) |
|
The Board of Aldermen was led by a chairman. The following table chronologically lists the tenures of individuals in this role:
Chairmen of the Boston Board of Aldermen [5] | |
---|---|
Name | Tenure |
Benson Leavitt | |
William Washburn | 1855 |
Phelham Bonney | 1856–1857 |
Joseph Wrightman | 1858 |
Silas Peirce | 1859 |
Otis Clapp | 1860 |
Silas Peirce | 1861 |
Thomas Philiips Rich | 1862 |
Thomas Coffin Amory | 1863 |
Otis Norcross | 1864 |
George Washington Messinger | 1865–1866 (1) |
Charles Wesley Slack | 1867 |
George Washington Messinger | 1868 (2) |
Benjamin James | 1869 |
Newton Talbot | 1870 |
Charles Edward Jenkins | 1871 |
Samuel Little | 1872 |
Leonard R. Cutter | 1873 |
John Taylor Clark | 1874–1877 |
Solomon B. Stebbins | 1878 (1) |
Hugh O'Brien | 1879–1881 (1) |
Solomon B. Stebbins | 1882 (2) |
Hugh O'Brien | 1883 (2) |
Charles Varney Whitten | 1884–1885 |
Charles Hastings Allen | 1886 (1) |
Patrick John Donovan | 1887 |
Charles Hastings Allen | 1888 (2) |
Homer Rogers | 1889 |
William Power Wilson | 1890 |
Herbert Shaw Carruth | 1891 |
John Henry Lee | 1892–1893 (1) |
Alpheus Sanford | 1894–1895 |
John Henry Lee | 1896 (2) |
Perlie Appleton Dyar | 1897–1898 |
Joseph A. Conry | 1898 |
David Franklin Barry | 1899 |
Michael Joseph O'Brien | 1900 |
James Henry Doyle | 1901–1904 |
Daniel A. Whelton | 1905 |
Charles Martin Draper | 1906 |
Edward L. Cauley | 1906 |
William Berwin | 1907 |
Louis M. Clark | 1908 |
James Michael Curley (acting chairman) | 1909 [7] |
Frederick J. Brand | 1909 [8] |
Gallery of Chairmen of the Boston Board of Aldermen (partial) |
|
The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan, and elect a mayor to a four-year term; there are no term limits. The mayor's office is in Boston City Hall, in Government Center.
The Seattle City Council is the legislative body of the city of Seattle, Washington. The Council consists of nine members serving four-year terms, seven of which are elected by electoral districts and two of which are elected in citywide at-large positions; all elections are non-partisan. It has the responsibility of approving the city's budget, and passes all legislation related to the city's police, firefighting, parks, libraries, and electricity, water supply, solid waste, and drainage utilities. (The mayor of Seattle is not considered part of council.)
Moses Kimball was an American politician, museum curator and owner, and showman. Kimball was a business rival and close associate of P. T. Barnum and public-spirited citizen of Boston, Massachusetts who represented the city in the Massachusetts General Court for several non-consecutive terms from 1851 and 1877 and made several runs for mayor.
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural council, village council, or board of aldermen.
Joseph Aloysius Conry was an American politician who served as a United States representative from Massachusetts. Although he served only a single term, he received national attention for his reformist views. He remained a highly popular speaker and writer, despite losing an election to Congress in 1908. Before serving in Congress, he held municipal office in Boston.
The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms, and there is no limit on the number of terms an individual can serve. Boston uses a strong-mayor form of government in which the city council acts as a check against the power of the executive branch, the mayor. The council is responsible for approving the city budget; monitoring, creating, and abolishing city agencies; making land use decisions; and approving, amending, or rejecting other legislative proposals.
Martin Brimmer was an American businessman and politician, who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, in the Boston Board of Aldermen, and as the mayor of Boston, Massachusetts.
Nathaniel Bradstreet Shurtleff Sr. was an American politician, serving as the twentieth mayor of Boston, Massachusetts from January 6, 1868, to January 2, 1871.
Thomas Coffin Amory Jr. was an American lawyer, historian, politician, biographer, and poet. He served as chairman of the Boston Board of Aldermen. He published on the American Revolution and his own ancestors.
The New York City Board of Aldermen was a body that was the upper house of New York City's Common Council from 1824 to 1875, the lower house of its Municipal Assembly upon consolidation in 1898 until the charter was amended in 1901 to abolish the Municipal Assembly and its upper house, and its unicameral legislature from 1875 to 1897 and 1902 to 1937. The corresponding lower house was known as the Board of Assistants or the Board of Assistant Aldermen from 1824 to 1875, while the upper house was known as the Council from 1898 to 1901. In 1938 a new charter came into effect that replaced the Board of Aldermen with the New York City Council.
An election was held in New York City to election the President of its Council on November 2, 1897. The charter of the new City of Greater New York had created a bicameral Municipal Assembly, comprising an upper Council and a lower Board of Aldermen. The Council president was elected citywide while the Board of Aldermen elected its own president.
The Boston mayoral election of 1854 saw the reelection of incumbent mayor Jerome V. C. Smith. It was held on December 11, 1854.
The Boston mayoral election of 1866 saw the election of Republican Party nominee Otis Norcross.
The Boston mayoral election of 1867 saw the election of Democratic Party nominee Nathaniel B. Shurtleff, who unseated Republican incumbent Otis Norcross.
The Boston mayoral election of 1876 saw the election of Democratic Party nominee Frederick O. Prince over Republican Party nominee Nathaniel Jeremiah Bradlee.
The Boston mayoral election of 1878 saw Republican Frederick O. Prince elected to return the mayoralty for a second nonconsecutive term. He defeated Democratic nominee Charles R. Codman and Greenback contender Davis J. King.
An election was held to fill the Municipal Assembly of the newly created City of Greater New York on November 2, 1897. The charter of the new city had created a bicameral Municipal Assembly, consisting of an upper Council and a lower Board of Aldermen. Each chamber was elected from specially-made districts. In addition, the president of the Council was elected in a separate election on the same day.
The Boston City Charter is a series of State statutes which codifies a system of rules for the government of the City of Boston, Massachusetts. The Charter is not a typical city constitution but rather a series of amendments, General Court rulings, and case law which form the basis of government. The central organs of the Boston City Charter are the Mayoral Office and City Council. The composition of these offices, their term length, manner of election, and scope of power have changed throughout the years.
The 1846 Boston mayoral election saw the reelection of Whig Party incumbent Josiah Quincy Jr. It was held on December 14, 1846.
Otis Clapp was an American publisher, bookseller, homeopath, pharmacist, and politician who served as a collector of Internal Revenue; a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives; a member and president of the Boston Board of Aldermen; and a member of the Boston Common Council.