Nineteenth Century
| Mayor | Start | End | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elisha Jenkins | 1816 | 1819 | Key figure in an early Albany scandal in 1807, when he was assaulted by General Solomon Van Rensselaer after passing a resolution questioning Van Rensselaer's honesty. A riot ensued, and Jenkins' nephew, Francis Bloodgood, struck and seriously wounded Van Rensselaer with a cane. Suits and countersuits were filed. Jenkins' appointment as Mayor has been viewed as a politically motivated move and further slight against the Van Rensselaer family; Jenkins resigned in 1819 and his term was completed by Philip Schuyler Van Rensselaer. Bloodgood later became Mayor of Albany as well. Jenkins also served as New York State Senator, State Comptroller, Secretary of State and Quartermaster to the General Northern Department during the War of 1812. |
| Philip Schuyler Van Rensselaer | 1819 | 1820 | See first term entry above |
| Charles E. Dudley | 1821 | 1824 | Merchant. Key early petitioner for the Erie Canal, helped found Cohoes Company to tap the power of the Mohawk River. The Albany Basin of Erie Canal completed during his term and canal began operation. His widow donated funds to found Dudley Observatory. |
| Ambrose Spencer | 1824 | 1826 | His wife was the sister of Governor DeWitt Clinton; also Attorney General of New York and Chief Justice of the New York Supreme Court, and member of the United States House of Representatives. |
| James Stevenson | 1826 | 1828 | Lawyer, one of the first governors of Albany City Hospital. During his term, a large celebration was held in Albany on the effective date of the emancipation of slaves in New York; resigned in 1828. |
| Charles E. Dudley | 1828 | 1829 | See first term entry above; resigned in 1829 |
| John Townsend | 1829 | 1830 | Laid the cornerstone for Albany’s old City Hall in 1829; major cholera outbreak during his term. Advised DeWitt Clinton in Erie Canal matters. Also President of National Commercial Bank, President of the Albany Exchange Company, President of the Water Commission, Vice President of Albany Savings Bank. |
| Francis Bloodgood | 1831 | 1831 | Clerk of the New York State Supreme Court, President of New York State Bank. See entry under Elisha Jenkins above for his role in a politically motivated brawl in 1807. |
| John Townsend | 1832 | 1832 | See first term entry above |
| Francis Bloodgood | 1833 | 1833 | See first term entry above |
| Erastus Corning | 1834 | 1837 | Founder of the New York Central Railroad and member of the United States House of Representatives; resigned in 1837. |
| Teunis Van Vechten | 1837 | 1839 | President of Albany Insurance Company and attorney to Patroon Stephen Van Rensselaer; first locomotive arrived from Boston during his term, though passengers disembarked in Greenbush (Rensselaer) and crossed the river by ferry; resigned in 1839. |
| Jared Lewis Rathbone | 1839 | 1841 | Last Mayor chosen by the Common Council, appointed to complete Mayor Van Vechten's term. President of Albany Medical College. Also served as Alderman. Father of Henry Rathbone |
| Teunis Van Vechten | 1841 | 1842 | See first term entry above |
| Barent Philip Staats | 1842 | 1843 | Physician, alderman, strong temperance sensibilities. |
| Friend Humphrey | 1843 | 1845 | Born in Connecticut, relocated to Albany in 1811. Albany Rural Cemetery was consecrated and Albany’s first telegraph office opened during his term. Advocate for public morality, he closed public markets on Sundays. New York State Senator. |
| John Keyes Paige | 1845 | 1846 | New York State Supreme Court Clerk from 1825 until his election as Mayor. President of the Canal Bank. |
| William Parmelee | 1846 | 1848 | Lawyer. Also served as City Attorney, Judge and Recorder. |
| John Taylor | 1848 | 1849 | Brewer. Known for his fine private library. |
| Friend Humphrey | 1849 | 1850 | See first term entry above |
| Franklin Townsend | 1850 | 1851 | Adjutant General of the State of New York, Assemblyman, President of New York State National Bank, Vice-President of Albany Savings Bank; nephew of Mayor John Townsend |
| Eli Perry | 1851 | 1854 | Merchant in live stock and provisions. Contracted to supply Union forces during the Civil War but lost his fortune in the process. Cousin of Commodore William Perry; Albany Law School organized during his tenure as Mayor. Also served as Alderman and Member of United States House of Representatives. Organized Albany Orphan Asylum. |
| William Parmelee | 1854 | 1856 | See first term entry above; died in office |
| Charles Watson Godard | 1856 | 1856 | Appointed by Common Council on the death of William Parmalee. Also served as Captain of the Port of New York, and was a prominent lecturer and philanthropist. |
| Eli Perry | 1856 | 1860 | See first term entry above |
| George Hornell Thacher | 1860 | 1862 | Owned Thacher Carwheel Co., headed Albany’s substantial humanitarian efforts during the Civil War. Also served as an Alderman. |
| Eli Perry | 1862 | 1866 | See first term entry above |
| George Hornell Thacher | 1866 | 1868 | See first term entry above |
| Charles Edward Bleecker | 1868 | 1870 | Planned Washington Park. During his term, construction of the Capitol began. First Mayor to have veto power. |
| George Hornell Thacher | 1870 | 1874 | See first term entry above; resigned during electoral challenge |
| John G. Burch | 1874 | 1874 | Coal and wood dealer and Alderman. Appointed to serve as Mayor during contested election between George Hornell Thacher and Edmund Lewis Judson. |
| Edmund Lewis Judson | 1874 | 1876 | Flour and provision merchant. Election was contested by George Thacher, contest dragged through the courts for two years; Judson was declared the winner only weeks before his first term ended. Also served as Alderman. |
| Anthony Bleecker Banks | 1876 | 1878 | Principal partner of Banks & Brothers, law publishers, booksellers, and importers; one of the oldest legal publishing houses in the United States. Served in New York State Assembly, New York State Senate. President of the Greenbush Bridge Company. |
| Michael N. Nolan | 1878 | 1883 | Born in Ireland, also served in United States House of Representatives. Albany's City Hall was destroyed by fire during his term; he resigned in 1883. He was the first Roman Catholic Mayor of Albany. |
| John Swinburne | 1883 | 1884 | Physician who served as a Medical Officer during the Civil War, and Surgeon-in-Chief of American Ambulance Corps during the Franco-Prussian War. Electric streetlights installed in Albany during his time as Mayor. His election was contested, and he was not formally seated until near the end of his elected term. He was one of the four founding physicians involved in establishing Albany Medical College. |
| Anthony Bleecker Banks | 1884 | 1886 | See first term entry above |
| John Boyd Thacher | 1886 | 1888 | Author, philanthropist, bibliophile. Son of Mayor George Hornell Thacher, uncle of Mayor John Boyd Thacher II. Also served as New York State Senator. In 1914, his widow donated the family land that formed the nucleus of the present-day John Boyd Thacher State Park. |
| Edward Augustin Maher | 1888 | 1890 | President of Union Railway Company and South End Bank. |
| James Hilton Manning | 1890 | 1894 | Publisher, President of the Weed Parsons Printing Company. Albany Railway Company (operator of Albany’s trolleys) converted to electric power during his term, eliminating horse-drawn carriages. Also President of the Hudson River Telephone Company and President of National Savings Bank. |
| Oren Elbridge Wilson | 1894 | 1895 | President of the Board of Education, Chief Accountant for Whitney’s Dry Goods Company. Also served as School Commissioner and President of the Board of Education. Appointed a Water Board favorable to building a filtration plant for the City, and significantly increased the size of the fire department. (Note: from this point forward, terms end on December 31, and the next Mayor's term begins on January 1, hence non-overlapping years) |
| John Boyd Thacher | 1896 | 1897 | See first term entry above |
| Thomas J. Van Alstyne | 1898 | 1899 | Civil War veteran, attorney; first public water filtration plant opened during his term. Also served as Judge, member of United States House of Representatives, and as a trustee of the Albany Institute. |
Read more about this topic: List Of Mayors Of Albany, New York
Famous quotes related to nineteenth century:
“I delight to come to my bearings,... not to live in this restless, nervous, bustling, trivial Nineteenth Century, but stand or sit thoughtfully while it goes by.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Literature always anticipates life. It does not copy it, but moulds it to its purpose. The nineteenth century, as we know it, is largely an invention of Balzac.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“The nineteenth century is a turning point in history, simply on account of the work of two men, Darwin and Renan, the one the critic of the Book of Nature, the other the critic of the books of God. Not to recognise this is to miss the meaning of one of the most important eras in the progress of the world.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“We have now traced the history of women from Paradise to the nineteenth century and have heard nothing through the long roll of the ages but the clank of their fetters.”
—Jane, Lady Wilde (1821–1896)
“Detachment is the prerogative of an elite; and as the dandy is the nineteenth century’s surrogate for the aristocrat in matters of culture, so Camp is the modern dandyism. Camp is the answer to the problem: how to be a dandy in the age of mass culture.”
—Susan Sontag (b. 1933)