- List of mayors of Charleston, South Carolina
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The Mayor is the highest elected official in Charleston, South Carolina. Since the city's incorporation in 1783, Charleston's chief executive officer has been elected directly by qualified voters, except for the years 1867-1868, when mayors were appointed by Federal officials. The position was known as intendant until 1836, and has been known as "mayor" since that time.[1]
Intendants and Mayors of Charleston, South Carolina
# Mayor Party Sworn In Left Office Comments 1 Richard Hutson 1783 1784 1 Richard Hutson 1784 1785 2 Arnoldus Vander Horst 1785 1786 3 John Faucheraud Grimké 1786 1787 Descendent of French Huguenots 3 John Faucheraud Grimké 1787 1788 3 John Faucheraud Grimké 1788 1788[2] 4 Rawlins Lowndes 1788[3] 1789 5 Thomas Jones 1789 1790 2 Arnoldus Vander Horst 1790 1791 2 Arnoldus Vander Horst 1791 1792 6 John Huger 1792 1793 6 John Huger 1793 1794 7 John Bee Holmes 1794 1795 8 John Edwards 1795 1796 8 John Edwards 1796 1797 9 Henry William De Saussure Federalist 1797 1798 Descendent of French Huguenots from Lorraine
Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1791
Attorney, indigo planter and slave owner[4]9 Henry William De Saussure Federalist 1798 1799 10 Thomas Roper 1799 1800 10 Thomas Roper 1800 1801 11 John Ward 1801 1802 12 David Deas 1802 1803 13 John Drayton 1803 1804 14 Thomas Winstanley 1804 1805 15 Charles Cochran 1805 1806 16 John Dawson, Jr. 1806 1807 16 John Dawson, Jr. 1807 1808[5] 17 Benjamin Boyd 1808[6] 1808 18 William Rouse 1808 1809 18 William Rouse 1809 1810 19 Thomas H. McCalla 1810 1811 19 Thomas H. McCalla 1811 1812 20 Thomas Bennett, Jr. 1812 1813 21 Thomas Rhett Smith 1813 1814 21 Thomas Rhett Smith 1814 1815[7] 22 Elias Horry 1815 1816 22 Elias Horry 1816 1817 23 John Geddes Democratic-Republican 1817 1818 Once a Member of the South Carolina State Legislature
Governor of South Carolina from 1818 to 182023 John Geddes Democratic-Republican 1818 1818[8] 24 Daniel Stevens 1819[9] 1819 24 Daniel Stevens 1819 1820 22 Elias Horry 1820 1821 25 James Hamilton, Jr. Democratic-Republican 1821 1822 U.S. Representative from 1822 to 1829
Governor of South Carolina from 1830 to 183225 James Hamilton, Jr. Democratic-Republican 1822 1822[10] 23 John Geddes Democratic-Republican 1823[11] 1823 23 John Geddes Democratic-Republican 1823 1824 26 Samuel Prioleau 1824 1825 Huguenot 27 Joseph Johnson 1825 1826 27 Joseph Johnson 1826 1827 28 John Gadsden 1827 1828 Once a Member of the South Carolina State Legislature 28 John Gadsden 1828 1829 29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat 1829 1830 30 James R. Pringle 1830 1831 29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat 1831 1832 29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat 1832 1833 31 Edward W. North 1833 1834 31 Edward W. North 1834 1835 31 Edward W. North 1835 1836 32 Robert Young Hayne Democrat (Nullifier) 1836 1837 U.S. Senator from 1823 to 1832
Governor of South Carolina from 1832 to 1834
First Charleston's chief executive officer known as Mayor of Charleston29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat (Nullifier) 1837 1838 29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat (Nullifier) 1838 1839 29 Henry Laurens Pinckney Democrat (Nullifier) 1839 1840 33 Jacob F. Mintzing Unionist Democrat 1840 1841 Once a Member of the South Carolina State Legislature 33 Jacob F. Mintzing Unionist Democrat 1841 1842[12] 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1842[13] 1842 2nd German-American mayor
Attorney
Major General with the 16th Regiment of South Carolina Militia34 John Schnierle Democrat 1842 1843 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1843 1844 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1844 1845 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1845 1846 35 Democrat 1846 1847 35 T. Leger Hutchinson Democrat 1847 1848 35 T. Leger Hutchinson Democrat 1848 1849 35 T. Leger Hutchinson Democrat 1849 1850 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1850 1851 34 John Schnierle Democrat 1851 1852 35 T. Leger Hutchinson Democrat 1852 1853 35 T. Leger Hutchinson Democrat 1853 1855 36 William Porcher Miles Democrat 1855 1857 37 Charles Macbeth Democrat 1857 1859 37 Charles Macbeth Democrat 1859 1861 37 Charles Macbeth Democrat 1861 1863 37 Charles Macbeth Democrat 1863 1865[14] 38 Peter Charles Gaillard Democrat 1865 1868 Huguenot
Gaillard was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Confederate Army.
He was removed from office by Federal authorities.39 Gen. W.W. Burns Military Appointment 1868 1868 40 Col. Milton Cogswell Military Appointment 1868 1868 41 G.W. Clark Military Appointment 1868 1868 42 Gilbert Pillsbury Republican 1868 1871 Pillsbury was Charleston's Reconstruction mayor.
He made career with the Freedmen’s Bureau.43 Johann Andreas Wagener Democrat 1871 1873 German-American and Lutheran mayor[15]
Wagener had been a Confederate General. He founded St. Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1840 and is buried in its Bethany Cemetery.44 G.I. Cunningham Republican 1873 1875 44 G.I. Cunningham Republican 1875 1877 45 William W. Sale Democrat 1877 1879 46 William Ashmead Courtenay Democrat 1879 1883 46 William Ashmead Courtenay Democrat 1883 1887 47 George D. Bryan Democrat 1887 1891 48 John F. Ficken Democrat 1891 1895 49 J. Adger Smyth Democrat 1895 1899 49 J. Adger Smyth Democrat 1899 1903 50 R, Goodwyn Rhett Democrat 1903 1907 50 R, Goodwyn Rhett Democrat 1907 1911 51 John P. Grace Democrat 1911 1915 1st Irish-American and Catholic mayor
The John P. Grace Memorial Bridge was named to honor him.52 Tristram T. Hyde Democrat 1915 1919 51 John P. Grace Democrat 1919 1923 53 Thomas Porcher Stoney Democrat 1923 1927 53 Thomas Porcher Stoney Democrat 1927 1931 54 Burnett Rhett Maybank Democrat 1931 1935 54 Burnett Rhett Maybank Democrat 1935 1938[16] Governor of South Carolina from 1939 to 1941
U.S. Senator from 1941 to 195455 Henry Whilden Lockwood Democrat 1938[17] 1939 55 Henry Whilden Lockwood Democrat 1939 1943 55 Henry Whilden Lockwood Democrat 1943 1944[18] 56 E. Edward Wehman, Jr. Democrat 1944[19] 1947 57 William McGillivray Morrison Democrat 1947 1951 57 William McGillivray Morrison Democrat 1951 1955 57 William McGillivray Morrison Democrat 1955 1959 58 J. Palmer Gaillard, Jr. Democrat 1959 1963 Huguenot 58 J. Palmer Gaillard, Jr. Democrat 1963 1967 58 J. Palmer Gaillard, Jr. Democrat 1967 1971 58 J. Palmer Gaillard, Jr. Democrat 1971 1975[20] 59 Arthur B. Schirmer, Jr. Democrat 1975[21] 1975 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1975 1979 2nd Irish-American mayor 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1979 1983 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1983 1987 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1987 1991 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1991 1995 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1995 1999 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 1999 2003 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 2003 2007 60 Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Democrat 2007 2011 Footnotes
- ^ Charleston's Intendants and Mayors.
- ^ Grimké resigned on September 15, 1788.
- ^ Rawlins Lowndes succeeded Grimké on September 29, 1788 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in 1789.
- ^ DeSaussure and Ford: A Charleston Law Firm of the 1790s, Sally Hadden, Florida State University
- ^ Dawson resigned in July 1808.
- ^ Benjamin Boyd succeeded Dawson on July 22, 1808 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in the same year.
- ^ Smith resigned in March 1815. Elias Horry succeeded him on March 30 of the same year.
- ^ Geddes resigned in December 1818.
- ^ Daniel Steven succeeded Geddes on January 11, 1819 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in the same year.
- ^ Hamilton resigned in December 1822.
- ^ John Geddes succeeded Hamilton on January 6, 1823 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in the same year.
- ^ Mintzing died in office on March 15, 1842.
- ^ John Schnierle succeeded Mintzing on April 4, 1842 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in the same year.
- ^ On February 18, 1865, Mayor Charles MacBeth surrendered Charleston to Lieutenant Colonel A.G. Bennett of the 21st US Colored Troops.
- ^ A Brief History, Pastor Cam Keyser, St Matthews Lutheran Church, Charleston, SC, June 5, 2007
- ^ Maybank resigned on December 27, 1938.
- ^ Henry Whilden Lockwood succeeded Maybank on December 27, 1938 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in 1939.
- ^ Lockwood died in office on June 5, 1944.
- ^ E. Edward Wehman, Jr. was appointed by the City Council to succeed Lockwood in 1944 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in 1947.
- ^ Gaillard resigned in 1975.
- ^ Arthur B. Schirmer, Jr. succeeded Gaillard on August 19, 1975 and served the remainder of his term, which expired in the same year.
Categories:- Lists of mayors of places in the United States
- Mayors of Charleston, South Carolina
- South Carolina-related lists
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