Boston City Council (1822–1909)

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 with members that was elected from multi-member wards. This city legislature was replaced in 1909 with the unicameral body that is the modern Boston City Council.

Boston City Council
Type
Type
HousesBoston Board of Aldermen
Boston Common Council
History
Founded1822
Disbanded1909
Preceded byBoston Board of Selectmen
Succeeded byBoston City Council (unicameral)
SeatsChanged over time
Constitution
Boston City Charter (1822)

Description

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 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 mayoralty that was established by the charter.[2]

When the Boston City Charter was rewritten in 1909, the Boston City Council was recreated as a nine-member unicameral body.[3]

Common Council

Presidents of the Boston Common Council

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 Welles1823
Francis Johonnot Oliver1824–1825
John Richardson Adan1826–1828
Elliphalet Williams1829
Benjamin T. Pickman1830–1831
John P. Bigelow1832
Josiah Quincy Jr.1834–1836
Philip Marett1837–1840
Edward Blake1841–1843
Peleg Chandler1844–1845
George Stillman Hillard1846–1847
Benjamin Seaver1847–1849
Francis Brinley1850–1851
Henry Gardner1852–1853
Alexander H. Rice1854
Joseph Story1855
Oliver Stevens1856–1857
Samuel Wallace Waldron1858
Josiah Putnam Bradlee1859–1860
Joseph Hildreth Bradley1861
Joshua Dorsey Ball1862
George Silsbee Hale1863–1864
William Bentley Fowle Jr.1865
Joseph Story1866
Weston Lewis1867
Charles Hastings Allen1868
William Giles Harris1869
Melville E. Ingalls1870
Matthias Rich1871
Marquis Fayette Dickinson Jr.1872
Edward Olcott Shepard1873–1874
Halsey Joseph Boardman1875
John Q. A. Brackett1876
Benjamin Pope1877–1878
William Henry Whitmore1879
Harvey Newton Shepard1880
Andrew Jackson Bailey1881
Charles Edward Pratt1881–1882
James Joseph Flynn1883
John Henry Lee1884
Edward John Jenkins1885–1886
David Franklin Barry1886–1888
Horace Gewynne Allen1889–1890
David Frankin Barry1891
Christopher Francis O'Brien1894–1895
Joseph A. Conry1896–1897
Timothy Lawrence Connolly1898
Daniel Joseph Kiley1899–1901
Arthur Walter Dolan1902–1905
William John Barrett1906–1907
Leo F. McCullough1908
George C. McCabe1909[6]

Board of Aldermen

Chairmen of the Boston Board of Aldermen

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 Washburn1855
Phelham Bonney1856–1857
Joseph Wrightman1858
Silas Peirce1859
Otis Clapp1860
Silas Peirce1861
Thomas Philiips Rich1862
Thomas Coffin Amory1863
Otis Norcross1864
George Washington Messinger1865–1866 (1)
Charles Wesley Slack1867
George Washington Messinger1868 (2)
Benjamin James1869
Newton Talbot1870
Charles Edward Jenkins1871
Samuel Little1872
Leonard R. Cutter1873
John Taylor Clark1874–1877
Solomon B. Stebbins1878 (1)
Hugh O'Brien1879–1881 (1)
Solomon B. Stebbins1882 (2)
Hugh O'Brien1883 (2)
Charles Varney Whitten1884–1885
Charles Hastings Allen1886 (1)
Patrick John Donovan1887
Charles Hastings Allen1888 (2)
Homer Rogers1889
William Power Wilson1890
Herbert Shaw Carruth1891
John Henry Lee1892–1893 (1)
Alpheus Sanford1894–1895
John Henry Lee1896
Perlie Appleton Dyar1897–1898
Joseph A. Conry1898
David Franklin Barry1899
Michael Joseph O'Brien1900
James Henry Doyle1901–1904
Daniel A. Whelton1905
Charles Martin Draper1906
Edward L. Cauley1906
William Berwin1907
Louis M. Clark1908
James Michael Curley (acting chairman)1909[7]
Frederick J. Brand1909[8]

See also

References
  1. "Boston Celebrates 200 Years". Boston.gov. 29 April 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  2. "Boston (Mass.). Common Council | ArchivesSpace Public Interface". archives.cityofboston.gov. Boston Archives. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  3. O'Connor, T.H. (1997). Boston Irish: A Political History. New York: Back Bay Books.
  4. Devine, John. "Research Guides: Boston (City) Departmental Reports: City Council Proceedings". guides.bpl.org. Boston Public Library. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  5. "A Catalogue of the City Councils of Boston, 1822-1908, Roxbury, 1846-1867, Charlestown, 1847-1873 and of the Selectmen of Boston, 1634-1822: Also of Various Other Town and Municipal Officers". City of Boston Printing Department. 1909. pp. 45–48, 57–183. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  6. "The Common Council's President". Boston Evening Transcript. January 15, 1909. Retrieved 1 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Curley Names Committees". Boston Evening Transcript. January 19, 1909. Retrieved 31 October 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Chairman of the Aldermen". The Boston Globe. January 26, 1909. Retrieved 31 October 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
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