Walter Lenox
Walter Lenox | |
---|---|
14th Mayor of the City of Washington, D.C. | |
In office June 10, 1850 – June 14, 1852 | |
Preceded by | William Winston Seaton |
Succeeded by | John Walker Maury |
Personal details | |
Born | Whig | August 17, 1817
Spouse |
Rachel Ludlow (m. 1855) |
Children | 1 |
Alma mater | Yale University |
Walter Lenox (August 17, 1817 – July 16, 1874) was
Early life
Lenox was born in the City of Washington on August 17, 1817, the son of Captain Peter Lenox and Margaret Wilkerson Lenox. He was the first mayor to be born in the city of Washington, graduating from
Political career
Lenox served on the Washington city council (the lower of its two legislative chambers) from 1842 to 1843, then as an Alderman from 1843 to 1849, serving his last term as President of the Board of Aldermen. Thus when mayor William Winston Seaton declined to run for a sixth term in 1850, Lenox was the heir apparent — although because of his young age (only 33), he was dismissed by many residents of the city, particularly when the popular former mayor Roger C. Weightman announced his intention to seek the office again. Ultimately, Lenox won the election by 32 votes.[1]
Lenox's term as mayor was of little note; his most prominent accomplishments were his presiding at the laying of the cornerstone of the extension to the
Lenox was a
Later life
After his mayoralty, Lenox married but became a widower after only eighteen months. He married Rachel Ludlow (the sister of NY Speaker of the Legislative Assembly William H. Ludlow) in January, 1855. She and their first-born child died July 1856.
Lenox sympathized with and supported the Confederacy. In June 1861, after the occupation of Alexandria by Union forces during the
Legacy
In 1887, the Walter Lenox School at 5th and G SE opened and was named in his honor. It closed in 1931 and the building served various non-profit organizations until the late 1990s when it was sold for development. In 2006 it opened as condominiums.[3]
References
- ^ a b Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, Volume 20 By Columbia Historical Society
- ^ "Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C." 1917.
- ^ Harris, Gabriela P. (Spring 2008). HISTORIC SCHOOLS IN WASHINGTON, D.C: PRESERVING A RICH HERITAGE (PDF) (Master of Historic Preservation). Retrieved 15 June 2016.