DeWitt Clinton Cregier (June 1, 1829 - November 9, 1898) was an American engineer and politician. He served as

Mayor of Chicago The mayor of Chicago is the Chief executive officer, chief executive of city Government of Chicago, government in Chicago, Illinois, the List of United States cities by population, third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsib ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

(1889–1891) for the Democratic Party.

Early career

Cregier worked as an engineer with the City of Chicago, and was awarded, in 1875, and in 1876, , both for

fire hydrants A fire hydrant, fireplug, firecock (archaic), hydrant riser or Johnny Pump is a connection point by which firefighters can tap into a water supply. It is a component of active fire protection. Underground fire hydrants have been used in Europe an ...

. The latter was a combination

drinking fountain A drinking fountain, also called a water fountain or water bubbler, is a fountain designed to provide drinking water. It consists of a basin with either continuously running water or a tap. The drinker bends down to the stream of water and s ...

, fire hydrant, and watering basin for animals. The Cregier hydrant is widely seen in old photographs of Chicago. Cregier was also

Master Mason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, presided as Worshipful Master of Blaney Lodge No. 271, A.F. & A.M. of Illinois for eight years, and served as Grand Master of Illinois in 1870–1871. D.C. Cregier Lodge No. 81 in Wheeling, Illinois, is named after him. He was a fifth great-grandson of

Martin Cregier Captain Marten Kregier or Cregier (1617–after 1681) most likely originated from Borcken in the Holy Roman Empire and was an early settler of New Amsterdam. He was a prominent citizen of the settlement and served three terms as Burgomaster. Kregie ...

, first

Burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam (, ) was a 17th-century Dutch Empire, Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''Factory (trading post), fac ...

. Cregier served as the chief engineer of the Chicago water system, and subsequently as Chicago's Commissioner of Public Works during the first mayoralty of Carter Harrison Sr. Cregier came into conflict with Harrison when Cregier's own ambition to someday become mayor became apparent.

Political career

DeWitt Clinton Cregier Portrait Chicago Mayor

In the

1887 Chicago mayoral election The Chicago mayoral election of 1887 saw Republican John A. Roche win by a landslide, receiving more than a two-thirds majority of the vote, defeating United Labor Party nominee Robert S. Nelson by more than 36 points (a margin of victory w ...

, the city's Democratic Party tried nominating him, but he declined their nomination. Ultimately, no Democrat would run in the election. Cregier won the

1889 Chicago mayoral election In the Chicago mayoral election of 1889, Democrat DeWitt Clinton Cregier defeated incumbent Republican John A. Roche, winning a majority of the vote and a margin of victory in excess of ten percent. The election was held on April 2, 1889. Ca ...

as the Democratic Party nominee, defeating incumbent Republican mayor

John A. Roche John A. Roche (August 12, 1844 – February 10, 1904) was an American politician from Illinois who served as Mayor of Chicago from 1887 to 1889. He was the 30th mayor of the city. Biography Early years John A. Roche was born in Utica, New York ...

. Cregier was sworn in as mayor on April 15, 1889. As mayor, Cregier, alongside former

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...

president Edward Turner Jeffery and businessman

Thomas Barbour Bryan Thomas Barbour Bryan (December 22, 1828 – January 26, 1906) was an American businessman, lawyer, and politician. Born in Virginia, a member of the prestigious Barbour family on his mother's side, Bryan largely made a name for himself in Chic ...

, delivered the presentation for Chicago's successful bid to the fifteen member United States Senate committee that decided what location would be awarded the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

. Cregier lost his bid for reelection in the

1891 Chicago mayoral election The Chicago mayoral election of 1891 saw "Reform" candidate Hempstead Washburne narrowly win a four-way race against incumbent Democrat DeWitt Clinton Cregier, former mayor Carter Harrison III, and Citizens Party nominee Elmer Washburn. Als ...

. He had first seen Carter Harrison Sr. challenge him for the Democratic nomination. Cregier was able to win renomination over Harrison, as the local Democratic

political machine In the politics of representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a high degree of leadership c ...

s had supported Cregier as they found him to be even more accommodating to them than Harrison had been. However, he lost the election in a four-way race, featuring Carter Harrison Sr. as an

independent Democrat In U.S. politics, an independent Democrat is an individual who loosely identifies with the ideals of the Democratic Party but chooses not to be a formal member of the party (chooses to be an independent) or is denied the Democratic nomination in ...

Hempstead Washburne Hempstead Washburne (November 11, 1851April 13, 1918) was a Republican attorney and politician from Illinois who served as Mayor of Chicago from 1891 to 1893. He was the son of United States Secretary of State Elihu B. Washburne. Early lif ...

as the Republican nominee, and Elmer Washburn as the "Citizens" nominee. Cregier placed second, losing to Republican nominee Hempstead Washburne. Cregier's tenure as mayor ended on April 27, 1891. In the

1893 Chicago mayoral election In the Chicago mayoral election of 1893, Democrat Carter Harrison III won election, returning him the mayor's office for a (then-record) fifth non-consecutive term as mayor of Chicago. Harrison won a majority of the vote, defeating the Republi ...

, Cregier ran as the nominee of the new "Citizens Party", but received little support. He died at his home in Chicago on November 9, 1898, and was buried at

Rosehill Cemetery Rosehill Cemetery (founded 1859) is a historic rural cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. At , it is the largest cemetery in the city of Chicago and its first private cemetery. The Entrance Gate and Administration ...

Legacy

In October 2011, a biography of Cregier entitled: ''The New York Orphan Who Built Chicago'' subtitled: ''The Story of DeWitt Clinton Cregier A 19th-Century American Engineering Genius'' was published, written Gloria Cregier Emma, one of Cregier's last surviving two grandchildren.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cregier, DeWitt 1829 births 1898 deaths Burials at Rosehill Cemetery Mayors of Chicago 19th-century American engineers 19th-century mayors of places in Illinois