1896 Birmingham municipal election
The 1896 Birmingham municipal election was held in December 1896 to elected a Mayor of Birmingham and a Birmingham Board of Aldermen made up of representatives from the city's 9 voting wards. Frank V. Evans was elected to his first and only term as Mayor.
Election
Registrars in each ward were responsible for qualifying voters for the election, under the guidance of Birmingham City Attorney Richard Evans. Registration was open from November 10 to November 20 and each qualified voter was given a ticket to present on election day. The registrars were listed as:
- 1st Ward: R. E. Lee at the Magic City Hotel (Morris Avenue and 14th Street)
- 2nd Ward: I. Epstein at Shepherd's Store at 19th Street and Park Avenue
- 3rd Ward: Prof. S. L. Robertson at Emond's Store at 19th Street and 10th Avenue
- 4th Ward: J. W. Savage at Butt's Store at 24th Street and Avenue A
- 5th Ward: J. L. Davis at the Jefferson County Courthouse on 3rd Avenue and 21st Street
- 6th Ward: W. M. Malone at Malone's Store at 26th Street and Avenue G
- 7th Ward: C. F. Douthit at Reynold's Lumber Yard at 20th Street and Avenue E
- 8th Ward: E. H. Rickman at Rickman's Store at 20th Street and Avenue C
- 9th Ward: D. C. Behrens at Behrens' Store at 12th Street and Avenue F
Frank Evans ran for election as a representative of the Democratic Party. Various opposition parties gathered in advance of the election and drew up "tickets" to run on a unified platform. They routinely nominated individuals who were not present, and later had to be notified by a reporting committee that they had been put forward for election. As a result, some individuals were nominated by more than one party and substitutions had to be made for those who declined nominations.
Citizens Reform ticket
The Citizen's Reform Party was organized by a group of about 75 citizens who met at Erswell's Hall on November 9. William Graves chaired the meeting, at which Benjamin Roden was initially elected as their candidate for mayor over Christian Enslen. When Roden declined to accept the next morning, former mayor James Van Hoose was reached by telephon. He also declined to be nominated unless Enslen had dropped out of consideration. He had not, so Enslen became the nominee.
- Mayor: Christian Enslen
- Board of Aldermen
- 1st Ward: C. T. Hardeman and W. H. Doyle
- 2nd Ward: W. H. Herrick and George Alexander
- 3rd Ward: S. M. Hamby and Robert Kerr
- 4th Ward: John Copeland and A. A. Clisby
- 5th Ward: James Downey and William Snider
- 6th Ward: Thomas Gathwright and William Connors
- 7th Ward: Edward Erswell and Henry Sinnige
- 8th Ward: Henry Gray or John McCardin and James Mackin
- 9th Ward: Oliver Chalifoux and George Church
Citizens Independent ticket
At their party meeting at Engineers Hall on November 9 the Citizens Reform Party nominated Alva Lowery as their candidate for mayor.
- Mayor: Alva Lowery
- Board of Aldermen
- 1st Ward: C. T. Hardeman and W. H. Doyle
- 2nd Ward: J. Early Lee and W. H. Herrick
- 3rd Ward: Robert Kerr and Joseph McKnight
- 4th Ward: none reported
- 5th Ward: Harry Hawkins and H. P. Moody
- 6th Ward: Thomas Gathwright and William Connors
- 7th Ward: John Hamilton and Edward Erswell
- 8th Ward: Augustus Bright and James Morris
- 9th Ward: John Woodrow and M. H. Matthews
Endorsements
The Birmingham News endorsed the candidacy of Christian Ensley, questioning the integrity of Frank Evans in relation to a bond deal undertaken during his tenure as City Treasurer. The News also endorsed a slate of Aldermanic candidates drawn from both Evans and Enslen's tickets:
- 1st Ward: W. H. Doyle and Thomas Wheeler
- 2nd Ward: T. T. Ashford and W. H. Herrick
- 3rd Ward: Robert Kerr and Joseph McKnight
- 4th Ward: A. A. Clisby and Joe Meighan
- 5th Ward: Mel Drennen and M. M. Williams
- 6th Ward: George Jakcson and Thomas Gathwright
- 7th Ward: W. J. Pearce and Henry Sinnige
- 8th Ward: Henry Gray and S. P. Fowlkes
- 9th Ward: George Church and Herman Henschell
In its editorial, the News explained that the city is a "municipal corporation" whose affairs were "simple business matters" requiring the attention of officers with the "capacity and character" for public service, rather than any political or religious affiliations. At the same time, the paper suggested that, "there are some otherwise admirably equipped candidates for Aldermanic duties, whose positions as to a water works deal, pool rooms, etc. tend to handicap their chances and will probably defeat them."
R. A. Mosely attended a meeting of Black voters for the sole purpose of assuring that the group did not endorse Frank Evans in the election. He reported that the group made no endorsements at all.
Results
At the regular December 3 meeting of the Board of Alderman, Christian Enslen moved for the Board to count and canvass the citywide vote immediately, but it failed on a 9-3 vote with Van Hoose recusing. William Kettig then moved to appoint a committee to canvass the returns, and that motion was carried, with J. M. Gillespie, James Meade and John L. Parker appointed to the committee. Additionally an Arbitration Committee was formed to review irregular ballots and make a determination as to the voter's intent. John Towers, Asbury Thompson and Walter Moore made up that committee.
The Arbitration Committee reported that the boxes for the 1st and 7th Wards had been brought without poll lists. They were able to determine the intent of 25 irregular votes from the 5th Ward. In general "only two or three boxes were regular as required by law," but the overall result being clear, the irregularities were determined to be moot.
Mayor
The Canvassing Committee returned after a 30-minute recess and made this report:
- 1st Ward: Evans 250, Ward 243, Wheeler 243, Doyle 98, Hardeman 96, Enslen 73, Lowrey 35, Van Hoose 1
- 2nd Ward: Ashford 250, Rambow 250, Evans 213, Enslen 212, Herrick 163, Lee 143, Lowrey 32
- 3rd Ward: Kerr 170, McKnight 136, Evans 74, Jones 66, Enslen 64, Lowrey 61, Van Hoose 1
- 4th Ward: Meighan 116, Moore 81, Enslen 64, Evans 61, Clisby 61, Lowrey 21, Baldwin 15, Purvis 13, Copeland 5
- 5th Ward: Drennen 346, Evans 305, Williams 289, Enslen 287, Bennie 284, Townley 217, Moody 66, Lowrey 61, Van Hoose 1
- 6th Ward: Altman 124, Graham 117, Evans 115, Gathright 81, Jackson 79, Enslen 74, Lowrey 49, Connors 39
- 7th Ward: Pearce 263, Hamilton 254, Evans 216, Sinnige 112, Enslen 96, Lowrey 28, Erswell 35, Van Hoose 1
- 8th Ward: Gray 246, McCartin 200, Evans 193, Enslen, 130, Fowlkes 95, Jernigan 71, Bright 51, Lowrey 44, Morris 29
- 9th Ward: Hentschell 211, Harrington 145, Evans 143, Enslen 114, Church 110, Lowrey 34, Matthews 33, Woods 18
Though Evans only won outright in one of the city's 9 wards, he amassed the most total votes, with 1,570 to Enslen's 1,117 and Lowrey's 363. Several other candidates enjoyed strong support in only one ward.
Aldermen
With the boxes counted, the following Aldermen were sworn in
- 1st Ward: John Ward and Thomas Wheeler
- 2nd Ward: C. T. Rambow ([[T. T. Ashford was elected but not present)
- 3rd Ward: Robert Kerr and Joseph McKnight
- 4th Ward: Joe Meighan and Walter Moore
- 5th Ward: Mel Drennen and M. M. Williams
- 6th Ward: J. F. Graham ([[J. J. Altman was elected but not present)
- 7th Ward: J. A. Hamilton and W. J. Pearce
- 8th Ward: Henry Gray and John McCartin
- 9th Ward: John Harrington and Herman Henschell
Inauguration
Evans and his board were sworn in on the spot by outgoing mayor Van Hoose, who "wished the new administration prosperity and hoped they would deal well with the cows, hogs and cattle running at large."
In his inaugural address, Frank Evans promised that no animosity would be preserved from the "bitter contest" just decided, and that "the people of Birmingham, regardless of party, color or conditions, will put their shoulders together for the interest of this great and growing city." He warned his board of the precarious financial condition of the city and its meagre revenues and poor credit. He promised "this administration will economize, retrench if possible," in part by seeking to eliminate sinecures and reduce the public payroll.
References
- "Three Men Will Run For Mayor of Birmingham." (November 10, 1896) The Birmingham News, p. 5
- "The Board of Aldermen." (November 28, 1896) The Birmingham News, p. 4