Alson Sherman

Alson Sherman (April 21, 1811 – September 27, 1903) served as Mayor of Chicago, Illinois (1844–1845) for the Independent Democrat Party.

Alson Sherman
8th Mayor of Chicago
In office
April 2, 1844[1] – March 10, 1845[2]
Preceded byAugustus Garrett
Succeeded byAugustus Garrett
Chicago Alderman from the 3rd Ward[3][4]
In office
1842–1843
Serving with John C. Haines
Preceded byE.H. Chapin
Succeeded byJ.L. James
Personal details
Born(1811-04-21)April 21, 1811
Barre, Vermont
Died September 27, 1903(1903-09-27) (aged 92)
Waukegan, Illinois
Political partyIndependent Democratic Party
Spouse(s)Aurora Abbott
ChildrenAlla, Fannie, Kate, Frank, Flora, Walter, Helen, Mary, Nancy, Abijah, Adeline, Marion, Caira, Lucius,
ResidenceChicago, Illinois

Sherman was born to Nathanial Sherman and Deborah (Webster) on April 21, 1811, in Barre, Vermont.[5]

Sherman established the first sawmill in Chicago and served as the city's first iceman.[6]

In the three years before he was elected mayor, Sherman served as chief of Chicago's fire department.[6]

In 1844, Sherman ran for mayor of Chicago after an initial election was election invalidated based on charges of "illegal proceedings and fraud."[7] He ran as an Independent Democratic nominee against incumbent Democrat Augustus Garrett and Liberty Party nominee Henry Smith, winning the office with just over 50% of the vote.[8]

As mayor, he oversaw the city's purchase of its first piece of fire-fighting equipment and appointed Denis Swenie as fire chief.

In 1849 he won a special election to replace E.H. Chapin, who had resigned from the Chicago City Council, as an alderman for the city's third ward. He won a full term in 1850.[3][4]

In 1850, he became one of the original trustees of Northwestern University.[9]

He moved to Waukegan, Illinois, in 1856.[6] In the 1870s, when a canal being dug in Lemont, Illinois, revealed Athens marble, Sherman was instrumental in developing the marble quarry there.[9] He died in 1903 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery, Waukegan, Illinois.[10]

References
  1. "Mayor Alson Smith Sherman Biography". www.chipublib.org. Chicago Public Library. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  2. "Mayor Augustus Garrett Inaugural Address, 1845". www.chipublib.org. Chicago Public Library. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  3. "Centennial List of Mayors, City Clerks, City Attorneys, City Treasurers, and Aldermen, elected by the people of the city of Chicago, from the incorporation of the city on March 4, 1837 to March 4, 1937, arranged in alphabetical order, showing the years during which each official held office". Archived from the original on September 4, 2018. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  4. Council, Chicago (Ill ) City (1892). Journal of the Proceedings of the City Council. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  5. "Chicago Mayors, 1837-2007". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  6. "Alson S. Sherman Dead". Chicago Daily Tribune. Chicago. September 23, 1903.
  7. Garrett, Augustus (March 7, 1844). "Inaugural Address of Mayor Augustus Garrett". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  8. Walker, Thomas (April 11, 2008). "Chicago Mayor 1844". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  9. "The History of Chicago's Mayors". Genealogy Trails. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  10. "Oak Wood Cemetery, Waukegan". graveyards.com. Matt Hucke. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
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