List of mayors of Jackson, Mississippi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The post of Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, was begun in 1834 and was originally referred to as "President of Selectmen" before being changed to "Mayor". Harvey Johnson Jr. elected in 1997 became the city's first black mayor. All of the mayors since have also been African American. The following individuals have held the office:
President of Selectmen
| Image | President of Selectmen | Years | Notes/Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas H. Dickson | 1834 | ||
| S.P. Baley | 1835 | ||
| Thomas H. Dickson | 1836 | ||
| S.P. Baley | 1836 | ||
| John P. Oldham | 1837–1838 | ||
Mayors
| Image | Mayor | Years | Notes/Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| John P. Oldham | 1839 | ||
| H.R. McDonald | 1840 | ||
| John P. Oldham (2nd term) |
1840–1841 | ||
| James H. Boyd | 1842–1843 | ||
| John P. Oldham (3rd term) |
1844–1849 | ||
| James H. Boyd (2nd term) |
1850 | ||
| J.P. Jones | 1851 | ||
| William H. Taylor | 1852–1853 | ||
| Richard Fletcher | 1854 | ||
| William H. Taylor (2nd term) |
1855–1857 | ||
| James H. Boyd (3rd term) |
1858 | ||
| W.A. Purdom | 1859 | ||
| Richard C. Kerr | 1860–1861 | ||
| Charles Henry Manship | 1862–1863 | ||
| D.N. Barrows | 1864–1867 | ||
| Maj. Thomas H. Norton | 1868 | Union officer appointed as mayor[1] | |
 |
Bvt. Lt. Col. James Biddle | 1868 | Union officer appointed as mayor |
| Col. James P. Sessions (J. P. Sessions) | 1868–1869 | Native of Natchez, Mississippi, former Confederate officer, died April 3, 1886[2] | |
| Rhesa Hatcher | 1869 | [3] | |
| Bvt. Lt. Col. Joseph G. Crane | 1869 | Union officer appointed as mayor; stabbed to death by Edward M. Yerger, a former Confederate officer | |
| Captain F.A. Field | 1869 | Union officer appointed as mayor | |
| A. Way Kelly | 1869 | ||
| E. W. Cabaniss | 1869–1870[4] | ||
 |
Oliver Clifton | 1870–1871 | |
| Rhesa Hatcher (2nd term) |
1871–1872 | ||
| Marion Smith | 1872–1874 | ||
| John McGill | 1874–1888 | ||
| William Henry | 1888–1893 | ||
| L.F. Chiles | 1893–1895 | He served as Assistant Secretary of the Mississippi Senate[5] He was also a deputy sheriff, alderman, and secretary of the Mississippi Fair Association. Testimony was given he proposed taking Charlie Morgan down to the swamp and tying him to a tree with someone posted to watch him until after an election because he was a leader of "negroes"[6] | |
|
Oliver Clifton (2nd term) |
1895–1897 | |
| Ramsey Wharton | 1897–1899 | ||
| H.M. Taylor | 1899 | ||
| W.W. Morrison | 1899 | Mayor Pro Tem | |
| John W. Todd | 1899–1901 | ||
| William Hemingway | 1901–1905 | ||
|
Oliver Clifton † (3rd term) |
1905 | died before taking office |
| Ramsey Wharton † (2nd term) |
1905 – November 1908 | Died in office | |
 |
A.C. Crowder | 1909–1913 | |
| Swepson James Taylor | 1913–1917 | ||
| Walter A. Scott | 1917–1945 | ||
| Leland L. Speed | 1945–1949 | ||
| Allen C. Thompson | 1949–1969 | ||
 |
Russell C. Davis | 1969–1977 | |
 |
Dale Danks | 1977–1989 | |
 |
J. Kane Ditto | 1989–1997 | |
_(cropped).jpg) |
Harvey Johnson, Jr. | 1997–2005 | first African American Mayor of Jackson |
 |
Frank Melton † | 2005–2009 | died in office |
.jpg) |
Leslie B. McLemore | 2009 | interim mayor |
|
Harvey Johnson Jr. (2nd term) | 2009–2013 | |
_(cropped).jpg) |
Chokwe Lumumba † | 2013–2014 | died in office |
 |
Charles Tillman | 2014 | |
 |
Tony Yarber | 2014–2017 | |
.jpg) |
Chokwe Antar Lumumba | 2017–2025 | [7] |
.jpg) |
John Horhn | 2025–present | [8][9] |