List of mayors of Birmingham, Alabama
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "Sidebar". The office of mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, United States, was established with the incorporation of the city in 1871. Robert Henley was appointed by Governor Robert B. Lindsay to a two-year term. Until 1910, the Mayor presided over an ever-expanding Board of Aldermen who generally campaigned on the same ticket. Progressive reformers lobbied for a change in the form of government that year, resulting in the creation of a five-member Board of Commissioners (later reduced to three members). The President of the Commission, though not formally holding the title, was widely acknowledged as "Mayor" under that system.[1]
As Birmingham grew, it eventually became the county seat of Jefferson County. Before Birmingham, the county seats were established first at Carrollsville (1819–1821), then Elyton (1821–1873). For many years, Birmingham was viewed as underrepresented in the state and federal legislature because its representation did not increase proportionately with its population growth. The city's new urban needs were ignored by rural officials, who refused to redistrict the area appropriately to represent the influx of immigrants and manual laborers, among others. The transition of Birmingham to the seat of Jefferson County allowed its local politics to become more influential on the state level.[2]
In 1963, as part of another progressive effort, this time to unseat Public Safety Commissioner Bull Connor, the form of government was again changed by referendum. Reorganized under Alabama's Mayor Council Act of 1955, the city government consisted of a mayor and nine at-large City Council representatives. Changing demographics in the city's electorate led to the election of Birmingham's first African-American mayor, Richard Arrington Jr., in 1979.[3][4]
In 1989 a change was made to elect council members by district, with 4-year terms coming at the midpoint of the mayoral term (allowing sitting council members to campaign for the mayoral office without having to resign their seats).[5]
Mayors
| Image | Representative | Years | Electoral history |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayors of Birmingham | |||
| Robert Henley | December 19, 1871 – July 1872 | Appointed by Robert B. Lindsay | |
| W. J. McDonald | July 1872 | Acting Mayor while Henley was absent | |
| Thomas Tate | July 1872 | Interim Mayor | |
| Robert Henley | July 1872 – April 22, 1873 | Died | |
| File:James R. Powell.jpg | James Robert Powell | 1873–1875 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Succeeded after Robert Henley's death. Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
| William Harrington Morris | 1875–1878 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Henry M. Caldwell | 1878 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Thomas Jeffers | 1878–1882 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| A. O. Lane | 1882–1888 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| B. A. Thompson | 1888–1890 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| A. O. Lane | 1890–1892 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| David J. Fox | 1892–1894 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| James A. Van Hoose | 1894–1896 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Frank V. Evans | 1896–1899 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Mel Drennen | 1899–1905 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| File:A history of Rome and Floyd County, State of Georgia, United States of America; including numerous incidents of more than local interest, 1540-1922 (1922) (14590040110).jpg | George B. Ward | 1905–1908 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Frank P. O'Brien | 1908–1910 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Culpepper Exum | 1910–1913 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Presidents of the Birmingham City Commission | |||
| File:A history of Rome and Floyd County, State of Georgia, United States of America; including numerous incidents of more than local interest, 1540-1922 (1922) (14590040110).jpg | George B. Ward | November 1913 – 1917 [6] Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, 1905–1908 Chose not to re-run |
| File:Nathaniel A Barrett.jpg | Nathaniel Barrett | 1917–1921 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| David E. McClendon | 1921–1925 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| File:Mayor J.M. Jones 1937 LCCN2016872605 (cropped).jpg | James M. Jones Jr. | 1925–1940 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Cooper Green | 1940–1953 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| James W. Morgan | 1953–1961 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Art Hanes | 1961–1963 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Mayors of Birmingham | |||
| Albert Boutwell | 1963–1967 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| George G. Siebels Jr. | 1967–1975 [7] Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| David Vann | 1975 – November 12, 1979 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| File:Mayor Richard Arrington of Birmingham (cropped).jpg | Richard Arrington Jr. | November 13, 1979 – 1999 |
First African-American mayor Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
| File:William A. Bell in 2015.jpg | William A. Bell | 1999 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Interim Mayor |
| File:Bernard Kincaid (105489053) (cropped).jpg | Bernard Kincaid | 1999 – November 12, 2007 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| File:Larry P Langford.jpg | Larry Langford | November 13, 2007 – October 28, 2009 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Carole Smitherman | October 29, 2009 – November 2009 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Acting Mayor First African-American female mayor Script error: No such module "Unsubst". | |
| Roderick Royal | November 2009 – January 25, 2010 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Acting Mayor[8] | |
| File:William A. Bell in 2015.jpg | William A. Bell | January 26, 2010 – November 27, 2017 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| File:Randall Woodfin - 2019.jpg | Randall Woodfin | November 28, 2017 – present Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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President of the Commission
| Representative | Years | Electoral history |
|---|---|---|
| Culpepper Exum | 1913 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| George B. Ward | November 1913 – 1917 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
Mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, 1905–1908 Chose not to re-run |
| Nathaniel Barrett | 1917–1921 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| David E. McClendon | 1921–1925 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| James M. Jones Jr. | 1925–1940 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Cooper Green | 1940–1953 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| James W. Morgan | 1953–1961 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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| Art Hanes | 1961–1963 Script error: No such module "Unsubst". |
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Mayor-Council Act of 1955
The Mayor-Council Act was a law passed by the Alabama State Legislature which restructured the municipal government of the City of Birmingham. It was intended to provide the citizens of Birmingham with more appropriate representation in government that was reflective of population changes during the century. It also attempted to balance the legislative and executive powers of the municipal government by removing the President of the Commission's ability to vote on proposed actions, instead giving the Mayor only veto power. The act was adopted following a vote by a referendum of Birmingham citizens on November 6, 1962. The first mayor under the Act was elected on March 5, 1963, as Albert Boutwell defeated incumbent Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor.[9][10]
See also
References
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- ↑ Harris, Carl V. (1977) Political Power in Birmingham, 1871–1921. Twentieth-Century America Series. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. Template:ISBN
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Casey, Ron (1979) "The Election of Birmingham's Black Mayor Template:Webarchive" Southern Changes: The Journal of the Southern Regional Council. Vol. 2, No. 3.
- ↑ Franklin, Jimmie Lewis (1989) Back to Birmingham: Richard Arrington, Jr., and His Times. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press. Template:ISBN
- ↑ Haeberle, Steven H. (1997) "Exploring the Effects of Single-Member Districts on an Urban Political System." Urban Affairs Review. Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 287–97.
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External links
- City of Birmingham, Alabama official website