Thomas Norton Hart (January 20, 1829 – October 4, 1927) was an American manufacturer, businessman, and politician from

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 ...

who served as

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 ...

from 1889 to 1890 and from 1900 to 1902.

Early life and career

Thomas Norton Hart was born in

North Reading, Massachusetts North Reading (pronounced, as is with Reading, Massachusetts, Reading as ()) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 15,554 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History The area was first settled ...

on January 20, 1829, coming to Boston when he was young and penniless, in hope of becoming wealthy. He eventually became president of the Mount Vernon National Bank.

Political career

Hart became a member of the

Boston Common Council Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a ...

in 1879 and held that position until 1881, when he was elected to the

Boston Board of Aldermen Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a ...

. He was known for his opposition to granting a franchise to the

Bay State Gas Company A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), ''gulf'', ''sea'', sound (geography), ''sound'', or bi ...

"to enter the streets of Boston for the sole purpose of making money". He held this position from 1882 until he ran for mayor of Boston in the 1886 election.

Elections

Hart lost his bid to become mayor in the 1886 Boston mayoral election to the Irish

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, and incumbent mayor,

Hugh O'Brien Hugh O'Brien (July 13, 1827 – August 1, 1895) served as the mayor of Boston from 1884 to 1888. O'Brien is notable as Boston's first Irish and Catholic mayor, having emigrated from Ireland to America in the early 1830s. O'Brien was the edito ...

, by 4,740 votes. He ran against O'Brien again in

1887 Events January * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the United States Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

, this time losing by a slimmer margin of 1,457 votes. In

1888 Events January * January 3 – The great telescope (with an objective lens of diameter) at Lick Observatory in California is first used. * January 12 – The Schoolhouse Blizzard hits Dakota Territory and the states of Montana, M ...

, in his third attempt to become mayor of Boston, Hart was successful against O'Brien, winning by a margin of 1,876 votes. He was reelected in

1889 Events January * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the Dakotas ...

, defeating

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

Owen A. Galvin Owen A. Galvin (1852–1897) was an American attorney and politician who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts from 1887 to 1890 and was the Democratic Party nominee in the 1889 Boston mayoral election. Early l ...

by a margin of 5,460 votes. In the 1890 election Hart was defeated in the Republican

primaries Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pri ...

Moody Merrill Moody Merrill (June 27, 1836 – December 24, 1903) was an American politician, businessman, and fugitive. He served in both houses of the Massachusetts General Court, was president of the Highland Street Railway, helped organize the Boston Cons ...

. He remained an active figure in Boston politics, running for mayor and being defeated by the incumbent, Nathan Matthews Jr., in

1893 Events January * January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America. * January 6 – The Washington National Cathedral is chartered by Congress; th ...

by a margin of 5,099. He ran once again in

1899 Events January * January 1 ** Spanish rule formally ends in Cuba with the cession of Spanish sovereignty to the U.S., concluding 400 years of the Spanish Empire in the Americas.''The American Monthly Review of Reviews'' (February 1899), p ...

, this time defeating former

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

Patrick Collins by 1,904 votes. His campaign was greatly aided when Collins' opponent in the Democratic primary, John R. Murphy, announced he would cross party lines and vote for Hart instead of Collins. Hart saw his last defeat in

1901 December 13 of this year is the beginning of signed 32-bit Unix time, and is scheduled to end in January 19, 2038. Summary Political and military 1901 started with the unification of multiple British colonies in Australia on January ...

, with Collins prevailing in a landslide, having 18,839 more votes.

Mayoralty

As mayor, Hart was strict and sought systemization. He opposed reforms within the Boston City Council and was against increased funding for projects unrelated to infrastructure. He fought what he saw as excessive spending for the maintenance of parks. He supported the erection of a subway, although through state or federal funds rather than local ones.

Death

Hart died on October 4, 1927, at the age of 98, in

Swampscott, Massachusetts Swampscott () is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located up the coast from Boston in an area known as the North Shore. The population was 15,111 as of the 2020 United States census. A former summer resort on Massachusetts ...

. At 98, he is the longest-lived mayor of Boston.

References

* ''Thomas Norton Hart, Mayor of Boston'', Boston, MA: Forest Hills Educational Trust (January 23, 2010). Visited July 4, 2011. * Image from ''Mayors of Boston: An Illustrated Epitome of who the Mayors Have Been and What they Have Done'', Boston, MA: State Street Trust Company, Page 40, (1914).

References

External links

Forest Hills Educational Trust information on Thomas N. Hart

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Thomas N. 1829 births 1927 deaths 19th-century mayors of places in Massachusetts 20th-century mayors of places in Massachusetts American Unitarians Massachusetts Republicans Mayors of Boston Boston City Council members People from North Reading, Massachusetts

Early life and career

Political career

Elections

Mayoralty

Death

See also

References

References

Further reading

External links