List of mayors of Birmingham, Alabama facts for kids

The mayor of Birmingham, Alabama is the main leader of the city. This important job started when Birmingham became a city in 1871. The first mayor was Robert Henley, chosen by the Governor of Alabama. For many years, the mayor worked with a group called the Board of Aldermen.

As Birmingham grew, it became the main city for Jefferson County. Before Birmingham, other towns like Carrollsville and Elyton were the county seats. A county seat is like the capital city of a county, where the main government offices are. For a long time, Birmingham felt like it didn't have enough say in state and national laws. This was because its population grew a lot, but the number of its representatives didn't. Rural officials often ignored the city's new needs. But when Birmingham became the county seat, its local leaders gained more power in state decisions.

In 1963, the way Birmingham's government worked changed again. This happened after people voted for it. The city government then had a mayor and nine City Council members. These changes also led to a big moment in 1979. That's when Richard Arrington Jr. became Birmingham's first African-American mayor. In 1989, another change happened. City Council members started to be elected by specific areas (districts) instead of the whole city. Their terms were also set to end in the middle of the mayor's term. This allowed council members to run for mayor without having to leave their council jobs first.

Mayors of Birmingham

This table shows the people who have served as mayor or the main leader of Birmingham.

Image	Representative	Years	Notes
Mayors of Birmingham (1871–1910)
	Robert Henley	December 19, 1871 – July 1872	Appointed by Robert B. Lindsay
	W. J. McDonald	July 1872	Acting Mayor while Henley was away
	Thomas Tate	July 1872	Interim Mayor (temporary)
	Robert Henley	July 1872 – April 22, 1873	Died in office
	James Robert Powell	1873–1875	Took office after Robert Henley's death
	William Harrington Morris	1875–1878
	Henry M. Caldwell	1878
	Thomas Jeffers	1878–1882
	A. O. Lane	1882–1888
	B. A. Thompson	1888–1890
	A. O. Lane	1890–1892
	David J. Fox	1892–1894
	James A. Van Hoose	1894–1896
	Frank V. Evans	1896–1899
	Mel Drennen	1899–1905
	George B. Ward	1905–1908
	Frank P. O'Brien	1908–1910
	Culpepper Exum	1910–1913
Presidents of the Birmingham City Commission (1913–1963)
	George B. Ward	November 1913 – 1917	Also served as Mayor from 1905–1908
	Nathaniel Barrett	1917–1921
	David E. McClendon	1921–1925
	James M. Jones Jr.	1925–1940
	Cooper Green	1940–1953
	James W. Morgan	1953–1961
	Art Hanes	1961–1963
Mayors of Birmingham (1963–present)
	Albert Boutwell	1963–1967
	George G. Siebels Jr.	1967–1975
	David Vann	1975 – November 12, 1979
	Richard Arrington Jr.	November 13, 1979 – 1999	First African-American mayor
	William A. Bell	1999	Interim Mayor (temporary)
	Bernard Kincaid	1999 – November 12, 2007
	Larry Langford	November 13, 2007 – October 28, 2009
	Carole Smitherman	October 29, 2009 – November 2009	Acting Mayor (temporary); First African-American female mayor
	Roderick Royal	November 2009 – January 25, 2010	Acting Mayor (temporary)
	William A. Bell	January 26, 2010 – November 27, 2017
	Randall Woodfin	November 28, 2017 – present

Mayor-Council Act of 1955

The Mayor-Council Act was a law passed by the Alabama state government. It changed how the city government of Birmingham worked. This law aimed to give Birmingham's citizens better representation in government. It also tried to balance the power between the mayor and the city council. Before this act, the President of the Commission could vote on new ideas. The new law gave the mayor the power to say "no" (veto) to proposed actions instead. Citizens of Birmingham voted to approve this act on November 6, 1962. The first mayor elected under this new system was Albert Boutwell on March 5, 1963. He won against Bull Connor, who was the Public Safety Commissioner at the time.

See also

• Timeline of Birmingham, Alabama