Stephen Palfrey Webb
Encyclopedia
Stephen Palfrey Webb was third and twelfth Mayor of Salem, Massachusetts
serving (1842–1845, 1860–1862) and the sixth Mayor of San Francisco (1854–1855).
in 1824. Webb studied law with Hon. John Glen King. Webb was admitted to the Essex County Bar and began his practice of law in Salem
.
and then in the Massachusetts Senate
. He was then elected mayor of Salem, serving three years in his first time in that office.
movement in 1854 where, he witnessed the violent mobs that ran through the city following the Gold Rush. He would prepare a report about these mobs (known as vigilance committees
) in 1874.
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
serving (1842–1845, 1860–1862) and the sixth Mayor of San Francisco (1854–1855).
Early life and education
Webb was born to Stephen and Sara (Putnam) Palfrey Webb in Salem, Massachusetts on March 20, 1804. Webb graduated from Harvard CollegeHarvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
in 1824. Webb studied law with Hon. John Glen King. Webb was admitted to the Essex County Bar and began his practice of law in Salem
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
.
Early Massachusetts political career
Webb served in the Massachusetts Legislature, first in the Massachusetts House of RepresentativesMassachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
and then in the Massachusetts Senate
Massachusetts Senate
The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the state...
. He was then elected mayor of Salem, serving three years in his first time in that office.
Mayor of San Francisco
He moved in to San Francisco in approximately 1853, was elected as Mayor with backing from the Know NothingKnow Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
movement in 1854 where, he witnessed the violent mobs that ran through the city following the Gold Rush. He would prepare a report about these mobs (known as vigilance committees
San Francisco Vigilance Movement
The San Francisco Committee of Vigilance was a popular ad hoc organization formed in 1851 and revived in 1856. Their purpose was to rein in rampant crime and government corruption. They were among the most successful organizations in the vigilante tradition of the American Old West.These militias...
) in 1874.
Later Massachusetts political career
After returning to Salem, Webb would be elected to his final term as that city's mayor, in which he served from 1860 to 1862. Webb also served as city clerk from 1863 to 1870.External links
- Mayor's of Salem from the City of Salem, Massachusetts.
- List of mayors of Salem, MA from the Political Graveyard
- San Francisco's Alcades and Mayors