List of mayors of Chicopee, Massachusetts

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The Mayor of Chicopee is the chief executive of municipal government in Chicopee, Massachusetts. The mayor's office oversees the enforcement of all laws and ordinances within the city, appoints and supervises a majority of appointed officials, and serves as an ex officio member of the Chicopee School Committee. Chicopee has a mayor-council government. Mayors of Chicopee are appointed through direct, non-partisan elections to a two-year term. The office has no term limits. The mayor's office is located in Chicopee City Hall in Chicopee Center.^[1]^[3]

StyleHis/Her Honor

TypeChief executive

MemberofSchool Committee

ResidenceNone official

Quick facts Mayor of Chicopee, Style ...

Mayor of Chicopee
Seal of Chicopee
Incumbent John L. Vieau since January 6, 2020
Style	His/Her Honor
Type	Chief executive
Member of	School Committee
Residence	None official
Seat	Chicopee City Hall
Nominator	Non-partisan nominating petition
Appointer	Popular vote
Term length	Two years (1917–present) One year (1891–1917)^[1]
Constituting instrument	Chicopee City Charter
Precursor	Chicopee Board of Selectmen (1848–1890)
Formation	1891
First holder	George Sylvester Taylor
Salary	$122,000 (2023)^[2]
Website	www.chicopeema.gov/393/Mayors-Office

The current mayor of Chicopee is John L. Vieau.

History

Prior to 1891, Chicopee had no mayor. The town was governed by an open town meeting and a Board of Selectmen to oversee the day-to-day operations of the town. Chicopee received its city charter in 1890 and elected George S. Taylor, who took office in 1891. Under the charter, mayors were elected annually on the first Tuesday in December and took office on the first Monday in January. If the mayor's office was vacated, it was mandatory for an election to take place, with the President of the Board of Aldermen serving as acting mayor.^[3]

When the city charter was revised in 1897, the city council was changed to a unicameral system and the mayor no longer presided over city council meetings or acted with the council in declaring elections' winning candidates. Additionally, it was no longer mandatory to call a new election if the mayor's office was vacated within three months of a mayor's term ending.^[3] The revised charter came into effect in 1898.^[4]

In 1938, the city's Franco-American Association endorsed holding non-partisan local elections.^[5] Proponents argued that non-partisan elections would alleviate racial or ethnic bloc voting and party factionalism.^[6] The city's first non-partisan elections were held in 1943.^[7]

List of mayors

More information #, Mayor ...

#	Mayor	Term	Party	Notes
1	George Sylvester Taylor	January 5, 1891 – January 4, 1892^[8]	Republican
2	William W. McClench	January 4, 1892 – January 2, 1893^[9]	Democrat^[10]
3	Henry H. Harris	January 2, 1893 – January 1, 1894	Republican^[11]
4	William M. E. Mellen	January 1, 1894^[12] – January 7, 1895	Democratic
5	Andrew W. Gale	January 7, 1895^[13] – January 6, 1896^[14]	Republican^[15]
6	Alexander Grant	January 6, 1896 – January 4, 1897^[16]	Republican
7	George D. Eldridge	January 4, 1897 – January 2, 1899	Democratic^[17]
8	Denis Murphy	January 2, 1899 – January 7, 1901	Unaffiliated^[18]	Born in Cork, Ireland; First Irish mayor of Chicopee^[19]
9	James H. Loomis	January 7, 1901 – January 4, 1904^[20]	Republican
10	Charles A. Buckley	January 4, 1904 – January 2, 1905^[21]	Republican
11	Albert E. Taylor	January 2, 1905 – January 6, 1908^[22]	Republican^[23]	Son of George Sylvester Taylor^[24]
12	Joseph O. Beauchamp	January 6, 1908 – January 4, 1909^[25]	Republican^[a]^[26]^[27]	Born in Saint-Roch, Canada; First Franco-American mayor of Chicopee^[28]
13	William J. Fuller	January 4, 1909 – January 2, 1910^[29]	Republican^[26]
14	Samuel E. Fletcher	January 2, 1910 – January 1, 1912	Republican^[30]
15	Frank A. Rivers	January 1, 1912^[31] – October 7, 1914^[b]	Unaffiliated^[32]
16	Rogette D. Earle	October 7, 1914 – January 4, 1915	Unaffiliated^[c]^[33]^[34]	Board of Alderman President, Acting Mayor^[35]
17	William J. Dunn	January 4, 1915^[36] – January 3, 1916	Democrat^[34]
18^[10]	Daniel J. Coakley	January 3, 1916^[37] – January 5, 1920^[38]	Democrat^[d]^[39]^[40]^[41]
19	James E. Higgins	January 5, 1920 – January 2, 1922^[42]	Republican^[41]
20	Joseph E. Grise	January 2, 1922 – January 4, 1926^[43]	Republican^[44]
21	Michael I. Shea	January 4, 1926 – January 2, 1928^[45]	Democrat^[e]^[46]
22	Henry Cloutier	January 2, 1928 – January 4, 1932^[47]	Republican^[48]
23	Anthony J. Stonina	January 4, 1932 – January 1, 1934^[49]	Republican^[50]	First Polish mayor of Chicopee
24	O'Neil Deroy	January 1, 1934 – January 6, 1936	Republican
(23)	Anthony J. Stonina	January 6, 1936 – January 1, 1940	Republican
25	Leo P. Senecal	January 1, 1940 – January 3, 1944	Republican^[51]
26	Edward O. Bourbeau	January 3, 1944 – January 7, 1952	Republican^[52]
27	Walter J. Trybulski	January 7, 1952 – January 2, 1956	Republican^[53]
28	Walter M. Grocki	January 2, 1956^[54] – January 4, 1960	Republican^[52]
29	Edward A. Lysek	January 4, 1960 – January 3, 1966	Republican^[55]
30	Richard H. Demers	January 3, 1966 – January 5, 1970	Democrat^[56]
31	Edward J. Ziemba	January 5, 1970^[57] – January 5, 1976	Republican^[53]
32	Howard W. Redfern, Jr.^[58]	January 5, 1976^[59] – January 2, 1978	Democrat^[60]
33	John P. Moylan	January 2, 1978 – January 7, 1980	Democrat^[53]
34	Robert F. Kumor	January 7, 1980 – January 2, 1984	Democrat^[53]
35	Richard S. Lak	January 2, 1984 – January 4, 1988	Democrat^[53]
36	Joseph J. Chessey	January 4, 1988 – February 28, 1997^[f]^[61]	Democrat^[62]
37	Patrick E. Welch	March 1, 1997 – July 7, 1997	Democrat^[63]^[64]	City Council President, Acting Mayor
38	Richard J. Kos	July 7, 1997^[g] – January 5, 2004^[65]	Republican^[66]	Did not run for re-election in 2003
39	Richard R. Goyette	January 5, 2004 – January 2, 2006	Republican^[67]
40	Michael D. Bissonnette	January 2, 2006^[68] – January 6, 2014^[69]	Democrat^[70]	Lost re-election for 5th term
(38)	Richard J. Kos	January 6, 2014 – January 6, 2020^[71]	Republican
41	John L. Vieau	January 6, 2020 – Incumbent	Unaffiliated

Notes

[a]
Lost Republican nomination, but submitted nominating papers as an independent Republican and was supported by James Loomis
[b]
Died in office
[c]
Ran as Republican in 1914 mayoral election
[d]
Ran as independent Democrat with Democratic support. Failed to receive nomination from Democratic and Republican caucuses in 1919 reelection.
[e]
Ran as independent Democrat
[f]
Resigned to accept appointment from Gov. Bill Weld as Deputy Commissioner of Local Services in the Department of Revenue
[g]
Took office in special election

References

[1]
"City of Chicopee, MA Charter". ecode360.com. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
[2]
"Chapter 7 Ordinance Revisions" (PDF). ecode360.com. City of Chicopee. p. 3. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
[3]
Historical Records Survey (1939). Inventory of Town and City Archives of Massachusetts No. 7. ~ Hampden County Vol. V ~ Chicopee. Boston, Mass.: Work Projects Administration. pp. 59–60.
[4]
Historical Records Survey (1939). Inventory of Town and City Archives of Massachusetts No. 7. ~ Hampden County Vol. V ~ Chicopee. Boston, Mass.: Work Projects Administration. p. 61.
[5]
"Franco-Americans favor non-partisan election bill". Springfield Daily News (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. March 9, 1938. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
[6]
"Nonpartisan bill heavily favored in city hall hearing". Springfield Daily News (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. March 19, 1938. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
[7]
"Primary system to be explained". Springfield Daily News (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. September 22, 1943. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
[8]
City of Chicopee (1893). Municipal Register for 1892. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 2.
[9]
City of Chicopee (1894). Municipal Register for 1893. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 9.
[10]
Jendrysik, Stephen (December 31, 2014). "One-year terms made for interesting mayors". The Republican (Springfield, MA). MassLive. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[11]
Kestenbaum, Lawrence. "Harris, G to I". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[12]
City of Chicopee (1895). Municipal Register for 1894. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 9.
[13]
City of Chicopee (1896). Municipal Register for 1895. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 11.
[14]
City of Chicopee (1897). Municipal Register for 1896. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 11.
[15]
Kestenbaum, Lawrence. "Galbreath to Gallaeur". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[16]
City of Chicopee (1898). Municipal Register for 1897. Chicopee, MA: George V. Wheelock, Printer. p. 9.
[17]
A Souvenir of Massachusetts Legislators. Boston, MA: Rockwell and Churchill. 1893. p. 110.
[18]
"State and Municipal Topics". The Republican (Springfield, Mass. December 10, 1899. p. 4. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[19]
Jendrysik, Stephen (June 9, 2010). "Irish immigrant Denis Murphy helped build, govern Chicopee". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
[20]
City of Chicopee (1905). Municipal Register for 1904. Chicopee, MA: E.S. Jacobs, Printer. p. 13.
[21]
City of Chicopee (1906). Municipal Register for 1905. Chicopee, MA: E.S. Jacobs, Printer. p. 13.
[22]
City of Chicopee (1909). Municipal Register for 1908. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers. p. 13.
[23]
Jendrysik, Stephen (September 29, 2022). "3 generations of Irish family patrolled Chicopee's streets". The Republican (Springfield, MA). Retrieved August 16, 2024.
[24]
City of Chicopee (1906). Municipal Register for 1905. Chicopee, MA: E.S. Jacobs, Printer. p. 13.
[25]
City of Chicopee (1910). Municipal Register for 1909. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers. p. 13.
[26]
Defeat Beauchamp Chicopee Republican Caucuses?search_terms "Fuller defeats Beauchamp". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). November 13, 1907. p. 7. Retrieved April 20, 2023. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
[27]
is Elected?search_terms "Beauchamp is elected". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). December 11, 1907. p. 7. Retrieved April 20, 2023. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
[28]
Brault, Gerard (1986). The French-Canadian Heritage in New England. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England. p. 147. ISBN 9780773505377.
[29]
City of Chicopee (1911). Municipal Register for 1910. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers.
[30]
is Nominated at the Chicopee Caucuses. Defeats Frank A. Rivers by 80 Votes - Jameson?search_terms "Fletcher is nominated". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). November 10, 1909. p. 9. Retrieved April 20, 2023. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
[31]
City of Chicopee (1912). Municipal Register for 1911. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co. Printers. p. 13.
[32]
"Ludwig to be a candidate". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). November 20, 1911. p. 10. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[33]
"Mayor Rivers wins again". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). December 10, 1913. p. 1. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[34]
"Dunn elected by 5". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). December 9, 1914. p. 1. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[35]
City of Chicopee (1915). Municipal Register for 1914. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co. Printers. p. 13.
[36]
City of Chicopee (1915). Municipal Register for 1914. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co. Printers. p. 13.
[37]
City of Chicopee. "City of Chicopee, MA Charter". chicopeema.gov. ecode360.com. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[38]
City of Chicopee (1921). Municipal Register for 1920. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers. p. 11.
[39]
1925-1926 Public Officials of Massachusetts. Boston, MA: Boston Review. 1925. p. 135.
[40]
"Coakley Mayor of Chicopee". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). December 16, 1915. p. 4.
[41]
"Chicopee G.O.P. picks Higgins". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). November 13, 1919. p. 11. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
[42]
City of Chicopee (1923). Municipal Register for 1921. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers. p. 13.
[43]
City of Chicopee (1926). Municipal Register for 1926. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers.
[44]
"Donnell Rally Tonight". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. September 2, 1922. p. 3. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
[45]
City of Chicopee (1928). Municipal Register for 1927. Chicopee, MA: L. Warren Paltz & Co., Printers. p. 13.
[46]
"Chicopee elects Dr. Shea mayor, crushing machine candidates under ballots". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). December 2, 1925. p. 1. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
[47]
City of Chicopee (1932). Municipal Register for 1931. Chicopee, MA: New England Press, Inc. p. 15.
[48]
Jendrysik, Stephen (March 22, 2017). "Forging a path for Poles, women". The Republican (Springfield, MA). MassLive. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[49]
City of Chicopee (1935). Municipal Register for 1934. Chicopee, MA: New England Press, Inc. p. 13.
[50]
Kestenbaum, Lawrence. "Massachusetts Delegation to the 1932 Republican National Convention". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[51]
Public Officials of Massachusetts: 1920. Boston Review. 1920. p. 277.
[52]
Hoffman, Sam (April 29, 1961). "Doubtful Democratic City Committee here will figure in the election". Springfield Daily News. Newsbank. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
[53]
Jendysik, Stephen (August 20, 2020). "Chicopee's mayors include many a lawyer". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
[54]
City of Chicopee (1957). Municipal Register for 1956. Springfield, MA: Allied Printing. p. 26.
[55]
Howard, Richard (1944). Public officials of Massachusetts 1943-44. Boston, Mass.: Commonwealth of Massachusetts. p. 216. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
[56]
O'Neill, Edward; Mills, Wallace (1980). Public Officers of the Massachusetts General Court 1979-80. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. p. 128. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
[57]
City of Chicopee (1971). Municipal Register for 1970. n.p. p. 15.
[58]
City of Chicopee (1976). Municipal Register for 1975-76. p. 5.
[59]
City of Chicopee (1976). Municipal Register for 1975-76. n.p. p. 17.
[60]
Briere, Glenn (May 13, 1976). "Hub councillor 'stump' area". Springfield Union (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
[61]
Greig, June (March 1, 1997). "Chessey serves final day in office". The Republican (Springfield, MA). Retrieved October 11, 2022.
[62]
Turner, Ford (October 22, 1990). "Chessey backs Silber, Blasts Question 3". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
[63]
Bonin, Michael (August 15, 1990). "Bellotti, at city rally, promises to bring change, not division". Springfield Union News (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
[64]
"Kendra applauds Welch's road plan". Springfield Union News (Springfield, Mass.). MassLive/Newsbank. April 30, 1997. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
[65]
Walsh, Etta (January 6, 2004). "Oaths, offices taken anew - 37th Chicopee mayor sworn in". The Republican (Springfield, MA).
[66]
Greig, June (June 22, 1997). "Chicopee candidates cite goals - Asselin touts experience in finance, economic needs". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
[67]
Appleton, John (October 9, 2003). "Candidate thanks Romney". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
[68]
Walsh, Etta (January 3, 2006). "Chicopee given 'new beginning'". The Republican (Springfield, MA).
[69]
DeForge, Jeanette (December 26, 2013). "Chicopee inauguration scheduled for Jan 6: Richard Kos as mayor and 4 new city councilors to take oath". The Republican (Springfield, MA). MassLive. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
[70]
Walsh, Etta (July 1, 2005). "Bissonnette plans mayoral challenge". The Republican (Springfield, Mass.). Newsbank. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
[71]
Johnson, Patrick (January 6, 2020). "New Chicopee Mayor John Vieau plans charging forward from day 1; shouts 'I want to get to work!'". The Republican (Springfield, MA). MassLive. Retrieved March 11, 2023.

List of mayors of Chicopee, Massachusetts

History

List of mayors

Notes

References

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