List of mayors of Milwaukee facts for kids

Milwaukee is a big city in Wisconsin, and like all cities, it has a leader called a mayor. A mayor is like the chief executive officer of a city, helping to make important decisions and lead the city's government. This page lists all the people who have served as mayor of Milwaukee. Back in 1910, when Emil Seidel became mayor, lawmakers in Wisconsin decided that most local government jobs, including mayor, should not be tied to a specific political party. This means that even if a mayor has a party, they are supposed to work for everyone in the city, not just their party.

Milwaukee's Mayors: A List of Leaders

No.	Portrait	Mayor	Party	Started Office	Left Office	Notes
1		Solomon Juneau (1793–1856)	Democrat	1846	1846
2		Horatio Wells (1808–1858)	Democrat	1847	1847
3		Byron Kilbourn (1801–1870)	Democrat	1848	1848
4		Don A. J. Upham (1809–1877)	Democrat	1849	1850
5		George H. Walker (1811–1866)	Democrat	1851	1851
6		Hans Crocker (1815–1889)	Democrat	1852	1852
7		George H. Walker (1811–1866)	Democrat	1853	1853	Served a second time
8		Byron Kilbourn (1801–1870)	Democrat	1854	1854	Served a second time
9		James B. Cross (1819–1876)	Democrat	1855	1857
10		William A. Prentiss (1799–1892)	Republican	1858	1859
11		Herman L. Page (1818–1873)	Democrat	1859	1859
12		William Pitt Lynde (1817–1885)	Democrat	1860	1860
13		James S. Brown (1824–1878)	Democrat	1861	1861	Was the only candidate running
14		Horace Chase (1810–1886)	Democrat	1862	1862
15		Edward O'Neill (1820–1890)	Democrat	1863	1863
16		Abner Kirby (1818–1893)	Democrat	1864	1864
17		John J. Tallmadge (1818–1873)	Democrat	1865	1866
18		Edward O'Neill (1820–1890)	Democrat	1867	1870	Served a second time
19		Joseph Phillips (1825–1906)	Democrat	1870	1871
20		Harrison Ludington (1812–1891)	Republican	1871	1872
21		David G. Hooker (1830–1888)	Democrat	1872	1873
22		Harrison Ludington (1812–1891)	Republican	1873	1876	Served a second time
23		Ammi R. R. Butler (1821–1901)	Democrat	1876	1878
24		John Black (1830–1899)	Democrat	1878	1880
25		Thomas H. Brown (1839–1908)	Republican	1880	1882
26		John M. Stowell (1824–1907)	Democrat	1882	1884
27		Emil Wallber (1841–1923)	Republican	1884	1888
28		Thomas H. Brown (1839–1908)	Republican	1888	1890	Served a second time
29		George W. Peck (1840–1916)	Democrat	1890	November 11, 1890	Left office to become Governor of Wisconsin
30		Peter J. Somers (1850–1924)	Democrat	December 6, 1890	June 5, 1893	Left office after being elected to Congress
–		Henry Hase (1847–1929)		June 5, 1893	July 1, 1893	Served as acting mayor
31		John C. Koch (1841–1907)	Republican	1893	1896
32		William C. Rauschenberger (1855–1918)	Republican	1896	1898
33		David S. Rose (1856–1932)	Democrat	1898	1906
34		Sherburn M. Becker (1876–1949)	Republican	1906	1908
35		David S. Rose (1856–1932)	Democrat	1908	1910	Served a second time
36		Emil Seidel (1864–1947)	Socialist	1910	1912
37		Gerhard A. Bading (1870–1946)	Republican-Democrat Fusion	1912	1916
38		Daniel Hoan (1881–1961)	Socialist	1916	April 16, 1940
39		Carl Zeidler (1908–1942)	Democrat	April 16, 1940	April 8, 1942	Left office to serve in World War II
40		John Bohn (1872–1955)	Nonpartisan	April 8, 1942	April 20, 1948	Served as interim mayor before being elected
41		Frank Zeidler (1912–2006)	Socialist	April 20, 1948	April 19, 1960
42		Henry Maier (1918–1994)	Democrat	April 19, 1960	April 19, 1988
43		John Norquist (born 1949)	Democrat	April 18, 1988	January 1, 2004	Left office for a new role
		Marvin Pratt (born 1944)	Democrat	January 1, 2004	April 20, 2004	Served as acting mayor; first African American mayor of Milwaukee
44		Tom Barrett (born 1953)	Democrat	April 20, 2004	December 22, 2021	Left office to become a U.S. Ambassador
45		Cavalier Johnson (born 1986)	Democrat	December 22, 2021	present	First elected African American mayor of Milwaukee