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Thomas M. Burgess

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Thomas Mackie Burgess
Thomas M. Burgess
2nd Mayor of Providence, Rhode Island
In office
February 1841 – June 1852
Preceded bySamuel W. Bridgham
Succeeded byAmos C. Barstow
Personal details
Born(1806-06-06)June 6, 1806
Providence, Rhode Island
DiedOctober 17, 1856(1856-10-17) (aged 50)
Providence, Rhode Island
Resting placeNorth Burial Ground, Providence
Political partyWhig
SpouseEliza Howard
Alma materBrown University
Known forMayor of Providence, Rhode Island

Thomas Mackie Burgess (June 6, 1806 – October 17, 1856) was an American politician. He served as second mayor of Providence, Rhode Island from 1841 to 1852.

Early life

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Burgess was born in Providence and graduated Brown University, class of 1822. After graduation, he began to study law, but abandoned this pursuit to become a successful merchant.[1]

Political career

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When Providence became a city in 1832, Burgess was elected one of the original members of the Providence Common Council.[2] On the death of the first mayor, Samuel W. Bridgham, in February 1841, Burgess was elected his successor and re-elected annually until 1852.

He was mayor during the Dorr Rebellion (1841–42), a violent free-suffrage movement that promoted voting rights for all men regardless of property ownership. This was a turbulent time when Rhode Island had two separate governors vying to run the state concurrently.[2]

Railroad career

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Burgess was president of the Providence, Warren and Bristol Railroad Company.[1] And/or he served as the President of the Boston and Providence Railroad Company.[2][3]

Personal life

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Burgess enjoyed spending winters in Charleston, South Carolina, where he made many lifelong friends.[1]

He married Eliza Howard of Providence in 1831.[1]

Was paralyzed by stroke about two and a half years before his death, then died of a second stroke. He died at his residence, 108 South Main Street, Providence, October 17, 1856.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e The Biographical Cyclopedia of Representative Men of Rhode Island. Providence, RI: National Biographical Publishing Company. 1881. pp. 352–353.
  2. ^ a b c "Mayors of the City of Providence". City of Providence website. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  3. ^ Greene, Welcome Arnold (1886). The Providence Plantations for 250 Years. Providence, RI: J.A. & R.A. Reid. p. 103.
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Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Providence
1841–1852
Succeeded by