# List of mayors of Memphis, Tennessee

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Government :
vte :
This is a list of mayors of Memphis, Tennessee.

## History

As a result of a yellow fever epidemic in 1879, Memphis lost so much of its population that it was disincorporated and was not rechartered until 1895. This accounts for the absence of a mayor during the period 1879–1893. The city leaders during this period were known as President of the Taxing District. They were David T. Porter (1879-1881), John Overton (1881-1883), David P. Hadden (1883-1891), William D. Bethell (1891-1893) and Walter L. Clapp (1893-1895) who then became mayor. See the article History of Memphis, Tennessee for more information.
| Mayor | Years | Notes |
| Marcus B. Winchester | 1827–1829 | |
| Isaac Rawlings | 1829–1831 | |
| Seth Wheatley | 1831–1832 | |
| Robert Lawrence | 1832–1833 | |
| Isaac Rawlings (2nd term) | 1833–1836 | |
| Enoch Banks | 1836–1837 | |
| John H. Morgan | 1837–1838 | |
| Enoch Banks (2nd term) | 1838–1839 | |
| Thomas Dixon | 1839–1841 | |
| William Spickernagle | 1841–1842 | |
| Edwin Hickman | 1842–1845 | |
| Jesse J. Finley | 1845–1846 | |
| Edwin Hickman (2nd term) | 1846–1847 | |
| Enoch Banks (3rd term) | 1847–1848 | |
| Gardner E. Locke | 1848–1849 | |
| Edwin Hickman (3rd term) | 1849–1852 | |
| A. B. Taylor | 1852–1855 | |
| Addison H. Douglass | 1855–1856 | |
| Thomas B. Carroll | 1856–1857 | |
| Richard D. Baugh | 1857–1861 | |
| John Park | 1861–1864 | |
| Thomas H. Harris | 1864 | |
| Channing Richards | 1864–1865 | |
| John Park (2nd term) | 1865–1866 | |
| William Lofland | 1866–1868 | |
| Edgar M. McDavitt | 1868 | |
| John W. Leftwich | 1868–1869 | |
| John T. Swayne | 1869 | |
| John W. Leftwich (2nd term) | 1869–1870 | |
| John Johnson | 1870–1874 | |
| John Loague | 1874–1876 | |
| John R. Flippin | 1876–1879 | |
| (None) | 1879–1895 | As a result of a yellow fever epidemic in 1879, Memphis lost so much of its population that it was disincorporated and was not rechartered until 1895. This accounts for the absence of a mayor during the period 1879–1893. The city leaders during this period were known as President of the Taxing District. They were David T. Porter (1879-1881), John Overton (1881-1883), David P. Hadden (1883-1891), William D. Bethell (1891-1893) and Walter L. Clapp (1893-1895) who then became mayor. See the article History of Memphis, Tennessee for more information. |
| Walker L. Clapp | 1895–1898 | |
| Joseph John "JJ" Williams | 1898–1906 | |
| James H. Malone | 1906–1910 | |
| E. H. "Boss" Crump | 1910–1915 | |
| George C. Love | 1915–1916 | |
| Thomas C. Ashcroft | 1916–1917 | |
| Harry H. Litty | 1917–1918 | |
| Frank L. Monteverde | 1918–1919 | |
| Rowlett Paine | 1920–1927 | |
| Watkins Overton | 1928–1939 | |
| E. H. "Boss" Crump (2nd term) | 1940 | |
| Joseph P. Boyle | 1940 | |
| Walter Chandler | 1940–1946 | |
| Joseph P. Boyle (2nd term) | 1946 | |
| Sylvanus W. Polk, Sr. | 1946–1947 | |
| James J. Pleasants, Jr. | 1947–1949 | |
| Watkins Overton | 1949–1953 | |
| Frank T. Tobey | 1953–1955 | |
| Walter Chandler | 1955 | |
| Edmund Orgill | 1956–1959 | |
| Henry Loeb | 1960–1963 | |
| Claude Armour | 1963 | |
| William B. Ingram | 1963–1967 | |
| Henry Loeb (2nd term) | 1968–1971 | |
| J. Wyeth Chandler | 1972–1982 | Resigned from office to accept a circuit court judgeship |
| J.O. Patterson, Jr. | 1982 | Served as interim mayor. First African-American mayor. Former State Representative (one term) and former State Senator (two terms). |
| Wallace Madewell | 1982 | |
| Richard C. Hackett | 1982–1991 | |
| W. W. Herenton | 1992–2009 | First elected African-American mayor |
| Myron Lowery | 2009 (Mayor pro tem) | 3rd African-American mayor |
| A C Wharton | 2009–2015 | |
| Jim Strickland | 2016–2024 | |
| Paul Young | 2024–present | 5th African-American mayor |