Thomas Willett, first mayor of New York. The Mayor of New York City is the executive director of the New York City Government, as stipulated in the New York City statutes. The current incumbent of office, the 110th in the sequence of regular mayors, is Eric Adams, a member of the Democratic Party. As the city grew in population and complexity during the 19th century, so did the relative importance of the mayor's office.
The collection of documents from the mayor's office of the Municipal Archives reflects this trajectory of the executive office in city government. Although the office of mayor dates back to 1665, the first collection of municipal documents consists exactly of two thin folders with documents from the office of Mayor Philip Hone (1826-2). By contrast, Common Council documents from that same period amount to more than 13 cubic feet. Our editors will review what you have submitted and determine if they should review the article.
Koch, the best showman and storyteller, stayed in the media spotlight as a columnist, talk show host and writer. He published two memoirs, Mayor (198) and Citizen Koch (1999). The documentary Koch (2001) premiered in theaters on the day of his death. After the creation of the British province of New York in 1664, British military governor Richard Nicolls led the newly renamed New York City.
The Consolidated City Statute of 1897 stipulated that the mayor should be elected for a single four-year term. That year, during the American Revolution, New York State formed a Nominating Council. The municipal statutes were amended so that the mayor's term of office was two years starting in 1902, but after two of those terms it was amended again to resume four-year terms in 1906. Brooklyn elected a mayor from 1834 until its consolidation in 1898 in Greater New York City, whose second mayor (1902-190, had been mayor of Brooklyn from 1882 to 1885). In theory, the consolidation of Greater New York City in 1898 and the enormous increase in the municipality's jurisdiction should have consolidated the power of the mayor.
For the next 150 years, the colonial governor, and then the governor of New York State, appointed the mayor annually. Request submitted by James Maurice to Mayor Hone to be appointed auctioneer for the city and county of New York, on April 18, 1825. Future blogs will analyze the role of the mayor and how the municipal collections of the Municipal Archives of the Mayor's Office reflect each of them in a unique way the period of time and the person who held office. During his term as mayor, the city suffered an outbreak of yellow fever and his collection includes four folders with documents related to the quarantine of ships that were disembarking in New York Harbor. The mayor continued to be selected by the Nominating Council of the New York Government until 1821, when Stephen Allen became the first mayor appointed by a local Common Council.
In 1665, shortly after the English took control of the colony from the Dutch, Governor Richard Nicolls appointed Thomas Willett as the first mayor of New York City. The divisive nature of his last term led him to lose his fourth election bid to David Dinkins, who became the first black mayor of New York City. Direct elections for mayor of the unconsolidated New York City began in 1834 for a one-year term, which was extended to two years after 1849.
