Third Wall Of Giants - El Paso's Mayors

Third Wall Of Giants - June 10, 2011.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: EPMH

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Third Wall Of Giants - El Paso's Mayors

Third Wall Of Giants - June 11, 2011.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: EPMH

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

First Mayor - Ben S. Dowell 1873 - 1875

The City of El Paso was incorporated by the Texas Legislature on May 17th, 1873. In the election of August 12, Dowell was chosen as mayor, with six aldermen. Their early concerns were for the safety of the water supply, the definitions of crime and punishments for them, the division of the city into three wards, and the design of a city seal. Within a month, three aldermen resigned and a forth was disqualified, so another election was held in October to fill the vacancies. During his term of office, Dowell corresponded with the mayor of El Paso Del Norte regarding the changing of the channel of the river that was the international boundary. The Mexican mayor proposed that they agree on a revision of the line, but Dowell insisted that such decisions rested the with authorities in Washington and Mexico City. Thus a possible settlement of the Chamizal difficulty might have been averted with a handshake across the river. Dowell stood for re-election in 1874 but was defeated by attorney M.A. Jones over the issue of whether dogs should be retrained; Jone supported a license fee and restraint and won, 33 to 17. The fragile city government fell apart the next year, not to be revived until 1880.By that time, Dowell was serving as county commissioner, having been elected in 1878. Besides his many properties in the town, Dowell operated a ranch in the Upper Valley. He and Juana had five children: Mary, born in 1854, who was to marry Warner Phillips; John, born in 1862; Nehemiah, born in 1866; Elijah, birthdate unknown; and Richard, born in 1875. Mary and Warner Phillips had a ranch on her father's land near the present intersection of Doniphan and Mesa. Their two young sons - Ben Dowell Phillips and John Newton Phillips - were near the ages of Mary's younger brothers. Mary's descendents continued to live in El Paso. http://www.elpasohistory.com/elpasohist/2-uncategorised/79-benjamin-s-dowell Image Description: A sepia photograph shows Ben S. Dowell in an oval shaped frame facing the camera directly. He wears a dark suit with a white shirt underneath. His face looks directly at the camera wearing a long white beard up to his chest. He has no mustache and his hair also white looks abundant although short and parted at the side.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: EPMH

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Richard Caples- Mayor 1889-1893

Richard Caples was the mayor of El Paso from 1889-1893.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Joseph Magoffin - Mayor 1881 - 1885

Joseph Magoffin was the mayor of El Paso during four separate terms, his first terms ran from 1881-1885. He was also the mayor of El Paso serving from 1897-1901.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Solomon Schultz - Mayor 1880 - 1881

Solomon Schultz was mayor of El Paso from 1880-1881.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

W. H. Austin- Mayor 1893-1894

W. H. Austin was the mayor of El Paso from 1893-1894.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Adolph Solomon- Mayor 1894

Adolph Solomon was the mayor of El Paso, his term was in 1894.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

John E. Anderson- Mayor 1939-1947 - El Paso, Texas

John E. Anderson was the 25th mayor of El Paso, Texas - his term was from 1939-1947.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Charles Edgar Kelly, Mayor, El Paso,TX circa 1911

KELLY, CHARLES EDGAR (1863–1932). Charles Edgar (Henry) Kelly, El Paso political leader, son of William H. and Mary (Woods) Kelly, was born in Fayette, Jefferson County, Mississippi, on June 11, 1863. He studied pharmacy at the Sisters of Charity Hospital in New Orleans and became a registered pharmacist. In 1883 he moved for his health to El Paso, where he later established the Kelly-Pollard Retail and Wholesale Drug Company. He was elected county treasurer four times between 1902 and 1910 and formed a political alliance with Joseph U. Sweeney, mayor of El Paso, who headed a strong Democratic party machine known as "the Ring." Rivalry within the Ring resulted in two factions, a reform group opposing open gambling and prostitution, and another group disposed to maintain the status quo. After the death on August 14, 1910, of Mayor W. F. Robinson, the city council appointed Kelly mayor; he was elected in 1911 and 1913 and served until 1915. Although he was accused of "bossism," Kelly's administration in practice was fiscally responsible. It assumed municipal acquisition of the privately owned waterworks, extended street lighting and paving, reduced the cost of fire insurance, voted funds for the construction of schools, and supported the building of Scenic Drive, which became a tourist attraction. Early in his administration the Mexican Revolution often threatened the welfare and safety of Americans living in El Paso. Mayor Kelly made national headlines when, in an El Paso hotel, he disarmed Francisco (Pancho) Villa, who had vowed to kill Gen. Giuseppe Garibaldi. With the revolution continuing to spill over into El Paso, Kelly demanded help, including military help, from the federal government. In a letter dated March 11, 1912, to President William H. Taft, he asserted that federal officials in El Paso were "doing everything to avoid irritating" our Mexican neighbors "rather than protecting American lives and property." As a result of his complaint, the United States government provided a show of force that brought about the desired effect. In the mayoral election of 1915 Kelly and his aldermanic team were defeated by a strong coalition of reformists, headed by Tom (Thomas Calloway) Lea, Jr.qv Though Kelly never ran for public office again, he was appointed by Governor James E. Ferguson to the board of regents of the University of Texas in March 1917 and served in that capacity until June 1923. In his honor a building at the University of Texas at El Paso has borne his name since 1921. Kelly brought the Texas Democratic convention to El Paso in 1914. He was a Catholic and a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Columbus, the Loyal Order of the Moose, and several civic and social clubs. He married Miss Willie Word, a teacher, on May 27, 1897, and they had four daughters. Kelly died on July 26, 1932, and is buried in Evergreen Cemetery, El Paso. https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fke76

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Thomas C. "Tom" Lea- Mayor - 1915-1917

Thomas C. "Tom" Lea was the mayor of El Paso from 1915-1917.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Tom E. Rogers- Mayor 1955-1957

Tom E. Rogers was the mayor of El Paso from 1955-1957.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Raymond Telles- Mayor 1957-1959

Raymond Telles was the mayor of El Paso from 1957-1959. Telles was the first Mexican-American mayor of a major American city. Following his terms in local office, Telles was appointed by President John F. Kennedy as the Ambassador to Costa Rica. In 1967 Lyndon B. Johnson appointed him as chairman of the United States-Mexican Border Commission.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Mayor - Richard M. Dudley 1923-1925 - El Paso, Texas

Mayor 1923-1925. Richard M. Dudley, engineer and El Paso mayor, was born near Waco, Kentucky, on January 1, 1862, the son of a Baptist clergyman. He helped build the New York harbor and later directed construction of the Chihuahua and Pacific Railway and the Mexico and Northwestern Railway, while in a Mexican partnership. In New York he built up his own contracting business and in 1896 married Fannie Moore of Tarrytown, New York; the couple had no children. In 1912 Dudley permanently settled in El Paso, Texas, where he organized the Texas Bank and Trust Company, which was later merged into the First National Bank. He was twice elected as a Democrat to the state legislature and was in his second term when he became embroiled in a bitter city campaign. The Ku Klux Klan was making a strong resurgence in Texas and controlled the school board in El Paso. As the anti-Klan mayoral candidate, Dudley was elected with his entire alder manic slate in an electoral setback from which the Klan never recovered. Dudley's administration was noteworthy for the construction of public buildings and recreational facilities, and he became the only mayor of El Paso to be elected without opposition when he ran for a second term. He was sworn in on April 16, 1925, but died in an El Paso hospital on May 1 of that year after undergoing ulcer surgery.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: EPMH

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

R. Ewing Thomason- Mayor 1927-1931

R. E. Thomason was the mayor of El Paso from 1927-1931. El Paso County's Hospital District was named Thomason Hospital in his honor for 50 years. In 2009 it was renamed University Medicial Center, or UMC.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Dr. Judson F. Williams - Mayor 1963-1969

Dr. Judson F. Williams was the mayor of El Paso from 1963-1969. The El Paso Convention Center is named for Dr. Jusdon F. Williams.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

First Woman Suzanne S. Azar -Mayor 1989-1991

First and only woman mayor of El Paso, Texas - 1989-1991.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Carlos M. Ramirez- Mayor 1997-2001

Carlos M. Ramirez was the mayor of El Paso from 1997-2001.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Raymond C. Caballero-Mayor 2001-2003

Raymond C. Caballero was mayor of El Paso from 2001-2003.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

John Cook Mayor 2005-2013

John Cook was mayor of El Paso, Texas from 2005-2013.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: City of El Paso

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History