Frederick William Mansfield (March 26, 1877 – November 6, 1958) was an American

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as the

mayor of Boston The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a m ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Early life

Mansfield was born in

East Boston, Massachusetts East Boston, nicknamed Eastie, is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which was annexed by the city of Boston in 1836. Neighboring communities include Winthrop, Massachusetts, Winthrop, Revere, Mas ...

, March 26, 1877. Mansfield was the son of Michael Read Mansfield and Catherine (McDonough) Mansfield, both of whom had immigrated from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Mansfield graduated from East Boston High School in 1894 and went on to

Boston University School of Law The Boston University School of Law (BU Law) is the law school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston. Established in 1872, it is the third-oldest law school in New England, after Harvard Law School and Yale Law School. Ap ...

, where he received a L.L.B. degree in 1902. Mansfield served as an

apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is an Early Modern English, archaic English term for a medicine, medical professional who formulates and dispenses ''materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons and patients. The modern terms ''pharmacist'' and, in Brit ...

in the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

on the USS ''Vulcan'' during the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

. After working as a pharmacist, Mansfield was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar in 1902. From 1928 to 1931 he was president of the Massachusetts Bar Association.

Early political career

In 1913, Mansfield was elected treasurer and receiver general of the

Commonwealth of Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

serving from 1914 to 1915. In 1914, he lost his bid for re-election to Charles L. Burrill. He was an unsuccessful candidate for

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

in 1916 and 1917.

Mayoralty

Mansfield ran for

Mayor of Boston The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a m ...

twice. He finished second to his bitter rival James Michael Curley in November 1929, then topped a field of six candidates in November 1933. He served as mayor from 1934 to 1938, during which he modernized the city's auditing and accounting systems while reducing the city's debt. Despite this, he was unsuccessful in his attempts to centralize the city's many departments. He took advantage of the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

to build the Huntington Avenue subway, a $1.715 million project the city only had to pay $539,227 for. He promoted the sales tax and favored low-income housing, as opposed to substandard housing. He was not eligible to run for re-election, as Massachusetts law at the time did not allow the Mayor of Boston to serve consecutive terms.

Personal life

Mansfield married Helen Elizabeth Roe on June 29, 1904. Mansfield's son, Walter Roe Mansfield, was born on July 1, 1911.Walter R. Mansfield, at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges (accessed January 22, 2009).

Death

Mansfield died in St. Elizabeth's Hospital,

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, November 6, 1958. He was buried in Holyhood Cemetery in

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline () is an affluent town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. An exclave of Norfolk County, Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton ...

References

Bibliography

* Hevesi, Dennis.: ''William R. Mansfield, Federal Judge is Dead at 75'', New York Times (January 8, 1987). {{DEFAULTSORT:Mansfield, Frederick 1877 births 1958 deaths People from East Boston Boston University School of Law alumni State treasurers of Massachusetts Mayors of Boston Catholics from Massachusetts 20th-century mayors of places in Massachusetts