Personal records of Members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council

Object Type: Folder
In Folder: Office of the City Clerk

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Personal records of Members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council

0300.013

Metadata Object Description - Record Information

Record Identifier: 0300.013

Record Creation Date: 2017-09-01

Description Standard: dacs

Metadata Object Description

Title: Personal records of the Members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council 1861-1890

Creator Name: Boston (Mass.). Record Commissioners

Type of Resource: questionnaires

Date Created: 1889/1896

Language: english

LCSH Subject Heading: Municipal officials and employees

LCSH Subject Heading: Boston (Mass.). Board of Aldermen

LCSH Subject Heading: Boston (Mass.). Common Council

Collection name and number: Personal records of the Members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council 1861-1890 (0300.013)

Metadata Object Description - Notes

Biography or History: In December of 1889, the City Council passed an order “that the Record Commissioners be requested to prepare and print as a public document, a list with brief notices, of the deceased members of the City Councils of Boston, Charlestown and Roxbury, giving exact dates as far as possible.” In April of 1890, the Record Commissioners under the direction of William H. Whitmore, Chairman, attempted to try to obtain from the living members and family of deceased members such personal facts to preserve as part of the city archives. The questionnaires were sent out circa 1890-1891 requesting information on name, place and date of birth, family, education, business, official positions, and military service.

Other descriptive data: The Record Commissioners in 1889 began to compile the “Personal Records” of the members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council. The collection includes biographical questionnaires from members who served on the City Council from 1861-1890. Gaps do exist throughout this span. The publication “A Catalogue of the city councils of Boston, Roxbury, Charlestown…” printed by order of the City Council, 1909 contains a list of all the members of the City Councils from 1822-1909 with a biographical notes number. William Whitmore used these same numbers, handwritten on the forms, to organize the collection. This collection consists of forms for City Council members #1004-#1966 with gaps and a log book of former City Council members #902-#1081 which includes address, dates served and occupation. An individual City Council member’s number can be found by consulting the index in the “Catalogue of the City Councils…” In addition to the printed forms, there are also news clippings, business letterhead, and transcribed obituaries for some of the members.

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Personal records of Members of the Board of Aldermen and Common Council

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