List of mayors of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This list of mayors of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is sorted chronologically, by default. The current mayor, since January 2022, is Democrat Wanda Williams.


| Mayor | Term | Political party | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| William H. Kepner | Apr 20, 1860 – Mar 27, 1863 | Democratic | |
| Augustus L. Roumfort | Mar 27, 1863 – Mar 23, 1866 | Democratic | |
| Oliver Edwards | Mar 23, 1866 – Jan 11, 1869 | Democratic | |
| William W. Hays | Jan 11, 1869 – Mar, 1870 | Republican | Died in office.[1] |
| George B. Cole | Apr 4, 1870 – Jan 9, 1871 | Republican | |
| William K. Verbeke | Jan 9, 1871 – Jan 13, 1873 | Democratic | |
| Jacob D. Boas | Jan 13, 1873 – Jan 11, 1875 | Republican | |
| John D. Patterson | Jan 11, 1875 – Jan 8, 1881 | Republican | Resigned.[2] |
| John Crull Herman[a] | Jan 8, 1881 – Apr 2, 1883 | Republican | |
| Simon Cameron Wilson | Apr 2, 1883 – 1886 | Republican | Died in office.[1] |
| Samuel W. Fleming Sr. | 1886–1887 | Republican | |
| John A. Fritchey | 1887–1893 | Democratic | |
| Maurice C. Eby | 1893–1896 | Republican | |
| John D. Patterson | 1896–1899 | Republican | |
| John A. Fritchey | 1899–1902 | Democratic | |
| Vance C. McCormick | 1902–1905 | Democratic | |
| Edward Z. Gross | 1905–1908 | Republican | |
| Ezra S. Meals, M.D. | 1908–1912 | Republican | |
| John K. Royal | 1912–1916 | Democratic | |
| Ezra S. Meals, M.D. | 1916 – April 18, 1917 | Republican | Died in office.[3] |
| William L. Gorgas | Apr 18, 1917 – May 15, 1917 | Democratic | Named acting mayor following Dr. Meals' death.[3] |
| Charles A. Miller | May 15, 1917 – July 12, 1917 | Republican | Died in office.[3] |
| William L. Gorgas | Jul 12, 1917 – Sep 24, 1917 | Democratic | Named acting mayor following Miller's death.[3] |
| J. William Bowman | Sep 24, 1917 – Nov 27, 1917 | Republican | Appointed for six weeks' time and retired from office.[4][3] |
| Daniel L. Keister | Nov 27, 1917 – Jan 5, 1920 | Republican | |
| George A. Hoverter | Jan 5, 1920 – Jan 6, 1936 | Republican | |
| John A. F. Hall | Jan 6, 1936 – Jan 1, 1940 | Republican | |
| Howard E. Milliken, M.D. | Jan 1, 1940 – Jan 5, 1948 | Republican | |
| Claude R. Robins | Jan 5, 1948 – Jan 2, 1956 | Republican | |
| Nolan F. Ziegler | Jan 2, 1956 – Mar 7, 1963 | Republican | Died in office.[5] |
| Daniel J. Barry | Mar 26, 1963 – Jan 6, 1964 | Republican | |
| William K. McBride | Jan 6, 1964 – Jan 1, 1968 | Republican | |
| Albert H. Straub | Jan 1, 1968 – Jan 5, 1970 | Republican | |
| Harold A. Swenson | Jan 5, 1970 – Jan 1, 1978 | Democratic | First "strong" mayor after switch to strong mayor variation of Mayor–council government.[6] |
| Paul E. "Tim" Doutrich, Jr. | Jan 3, 1978 – Jan 5, 1982 | Republican | |
| Stephen R. Reed | Jan 5, 1982 – Jan 4, 2010 | Democratic | Defeated for renomination in 2009. |
| Linda D. Thompson | Jan 4, 2010 – Jan 6, 2014 | Democratic | Defeated for renomination in 2013; first female and first black mayor. |
| Eric R. Papenfuse | Jan 6, 2014 – Jan 3, 2022 | Democratic | Reelected November 2017; defeated for renomination and lost write-in campaign in November 2021. |
| Wanda R. D. Williams | Jan 3, 2022 – present[b] | Democratic |
| Mayor of Harrisburg | |
|---|---|
| Term length | Four years |
| Inaugural holder | William H. Kepner |
| Formation | 1860 |
| Website | Office of the Mayor |
See also
Notes
- John C. Herman was given the middle name of "Crull" because that was his grandmother's surname. It was also a means to preserve a surname with an ancient heritage. Already his cousins—the Crull Blymer twins—had it as their middle names for preservation purposes. Because the "Crull Blymer" twins had gone to Phillips Exeter Academy (Class of 1872) and then destined for Harvard College (Class of 1876), John Crull Herman was sent to Yale College. His son, John Crull Herman also attended Yale (Class of 1915) and was a member of Wolf's Head; and his grandson John Crull Herman III graduated from Yale in 1939 where he, too, was a member of Wolf's Head. He also later taught at the Yale School of Architecture