Benjamin Seaver

Benjamin Seaver (April 12, 1795 – February 14, 1856) was an American politician, serving as the thirteenth mayor of Boston, Massachusetts from January 5, 1852 to January 2, 1854.[12]

For the TV sitcom character of the same name, see Growing Pains.
Benjamin Seaver
Mayor of Boston
In office
January 5, 1852[1] – January 2, 1854[2]
Preceded byJohn P. Bigelow
Succeeded byJerome V. C. Smith
President of the Boston Common Council[3]
In office
July 1, 1847[4] – January 7, 1850[5]
Preceded byGeorge Stillman Hillard[4]
Succeeded byFrancis Brinley[5]
Member of the Boston Common Council[6]
In office
January 3, 1848[7] – January 7, 1850[5]
ConstituencyWard 4
In office
July 6, 1845[8] – January 3, 1848[7]
ConstituencyWard 5
Personal details
BornApril 12, 1795[9]
Roxbury, Massachusetts
DiedFebruary 14, 1856(1856-02-14) (aged 60)[10]
Political partyWhig
SpouseSarah Johnson[9]
ChildrenBenjamin Francis (1820-1868), Henry Gardner (1822-1838), Mary Elizabeth (1825-?), Charles Milton (1829-?).[10]
Alma materRoxbury Grammar School[11]
OccupationAuctioneer[11]

Early life

Seaver was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts[13] In 1812 Seaver became an apprentice at the auction and commission store of Whitwell & Bond.[13] In 1816 Seaver became a partner in the firm which was renamed Whitwell, Bond & Co.[13] In 1818, Seaver purchased 5 shares of the Suffolk Bank, a clearinghouse bank on State Street in Boston.[14]

Seaver married Sarah Johnson.[9]

Political career

City of Boston Common Council

Seaver was first elected to represent Boston's Ward 5 as a member of the Boston Common Council in 1845. He was reelected to the Common Council from Ward 5 in 1846 and 1847. In 1848 Seaver moved to Ward 4 and was subsequently elected as a councilor from the new ward in 1848 and 1849.

In July 1847 Seaver was elected as the president of the Common Council and held that position for the two and a half years that he remained on the City of Boston Common Council.[9]

Massachusetts legislature

From 1846 to 1848 Seaver served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and in 1850 and 1851 he was elected to the Massachusetts Senate.[10]

See also

References
  1. A Catalogue of the City Councils of Boston (CCC Boston), 1822-1908, Roxbury, 1846-1867, Charlestown 1847-1873 and of The Selectmen of Boston, 1634-1822 also of Various Other Town and Municipal officers (printed by Order of the City Council), Boston, MA: City of Boston Printing Department, 1909, p. 242
  2. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, p. 244.
  3. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, pp. 237-240.
  4. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, p. 237.
  5. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, p. 240.
  6. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, pp. 235-240.
  7. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, p. 238.
  8. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, p. 235.
  9. Waters, Henry Fritz-Gilbert Waters (1872), The New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, p. 321
  10. Waters (1872), p. 322.
  11. Mayors of Boston: An Illustrated Epitome of who the Mayors Have Been and What they Have Done, Boston, MA: State Street Trust Company, 1914, p. 23
  12. CCC Boston, 1822-1908, pp. 241-244.
  13. The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Volume XXVI, Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1872, p. 321
  14. Whitney, David R. (1878), The Suffolk Bank, Cambridge, MA: Riverside Press, pp. 4–5
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