Boston City Council (1822–1909)
Bicameral city council in Massachusetts, US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Boston City Council was the bicameral legislative body of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, from 1822 until 1909. Its upper chamber was the Board of Aldermen, whose members were elected at-large, while the lower chamber was the much larger Common Council, whose members were elected from multi-member electoral districts (wards). Prior to 1822, the Boston Board of Selectmen governed the city. The bicameral council lasted until 1909, when it was replaced by the modern Boston City Council. Unlike the bicameral 1822 council, the modern council that was established in 1909 is unicameral.
Boston Common Council (lower chamber)
Boston City Council | |
|---|---|
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Houses | Boston Board of Aldermen (upper chamber) Boston Common Council (lower chamber) |
| History | |
| Founded | May 1, 1822 |
| Disbanded | 1909 |
| Preceded by | Boston Board of Selectmen |
| Succeeded by | Boston City Council (unicameral) |
| Seats | Varied 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 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]
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 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) |
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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 Washburn | 1855 |
| Phelham Bonney | 1856–1857 |
| Joseph Wightman | 1858 |
| Silas Peirce | 1859 |
| Otis Clapp | 1860 |
| Silas Peirce | 1861 |
| Thomas Phillips 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) |
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