Josiah Quincy VI (/ˈkwɪnzi/; October 15, 1859 – September 8, 1919) was an American politician from Massachusetts who served as mayor of Boston from 1896 to 1900. A member of the Quincy political family, his grandfather Josiah Quincy IV (also known as Josiah Quincy Jr.) and great-grandfather Josiah Quincy III also had served as mayors of Boston.
Early life and career
Quincy was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, on October 15, 1859, the son of Josiah Phillips Quincy (1829-1910), and Helen Frances "Fanny" (Huntington) Quincy (1831-1903).[4][5] Josiah Phillips Quincy was a Harvard graduate and was a lawyer and poet who also wrote several books related to politics.[6] Josiah Quincy VI's grandfather and great-grandfather had both been mayors of Boston.[4]
A life-long supporter of historical preservation and organizations, Quincy addressed the first meeting of the Bostonian Society inside the Old State House in 1882, wherein he advocated for the retelling and commemoration of American history as a relevant subject.[7]
Quincy served two terms as mayor of Boston, being elected in December 1895, re-elected in December 1897, and holding office from January 1896 to January 1900.
Quincy appointed a board of advisors, made up of Boston's leading businessmen, to guide him in the matters of taxes, business, and finance. In 1899, he united the city's various railroad terminals by building the South Stationunion station, which cost the city $3.6 million.[9] It soon became the busiest station in New England.[10] He saw to it that many playgrounds, public baths, and gymnasia were created during his mayoralty.[11]
He was contemporaneously both applauded and criticized for his "socialist" reforms.[12]
Quincy died in his home in Boston on September 8, 1919,[10] at the age of 59.
Personal life
Soon after leaving the mayoral office, on February 17, 1900, Quincy married Ellen Frances Krebs Tyler, a Christian Scientist, in London. She was the widow of William Royall Tyler (1852-1897) and mother of Royall Tyler, as well as the inheritor to a sizable shipbuilding fortune, which saw her receive $10,000 annually. They lived in Biarritz, France together and had one child, a son, named Edmund Quincy (1903-1997), who became a painter, author, and poet.[13] Ellen died from cancer on February 16, 1904, one day short of their fourth anniversary.[14]
Quincy remarried a year later, marrying Mary D. Honey (1873-1941), who later adopted Edmund as her son. She was the daughter of Samuel Robinson Honey (1842-1927),[8] who was mayor of Newport, Rhode Island in 1892.[15]
^"THE BOSTONIAN SOCIETY.: OPENING MEETING OF THE SOCIETY IN ITS NEW ROOMS IN THE OLD STATE HOUSE--MANY INTERSTING SPEECHES." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), 1882 Oct 11 1882/10/11/, p. 4. ProQuest. Web. 8 July 2024". 1919-09-09.