Francis Irwin Burnell (1863 – March 18, 1926) was a one-term

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mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Norwalk, Connecticut , image_map = Fairfield County Connecticut incorporated and unincorporated areas Norwalk highlighted.svg , mapsize = 230px , map_caption = Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County and ...

from 1913 to 1915. He was also mayor of

South Norwalk South Norwalk is a neighborhood in Norwalk, Connecticut which corresponds to the city's Second Taxing District. Often referred to as SoNo, the neighborhood was originally settled as Old Well, then chartered as the city of South Norwalk on August ...

from 1907 to 1909 prior to the consolidation of the two municipalities.

Early life

Burnell was born in Pierstown, New York. He was raised in

Otsego County, New York Otsego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,524. The county seat is Cooperstown. The name ''Otsego'' is from a Mohawk or Oneida word meaning "place of the rock." History In 178 ...

, and attended schools in

Richfield Springs, New York Richfield Springs is a village located in the Town of Richfield, on the north-central border of Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 1,264 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from local sulfur springs. Geography The vi ...

. He was the principal of the Hartwick Union school, and East End School at Oneonta,

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. He studied medicine at Long Island Medical College, and graduated in 1894. On February 26, 1895, he married Fanny Tripp of

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. Soon after his marriage, he took up graduate school at Polyclinic Hospital in

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. He took up residence in Norwalk on September 28, 1895.

Political career

In 1907, Burnell defeated Republican Matthew Corbett for mayor of South Norwalk.Google News Archive Search
/ref> He served two one-year terms, and when South Norwalk and Norwalk were consolidated he was elected the first mayor of the consolidated city.

Associations

* Member, Old Well Lodge Number 108 of MasonsThe Norwalk Hour
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnell, Francis Irwin 1863 births 1926 deaths Physicians from New York City Burials in Riverside Cemetery (Norwalk, Connecticut) Connecticut Republicans Deaths from pneumonia in Connecticut Mayors of Norwalk, Connecticut People from Otsego County, New York People from Armonk, New York People from Oneonta, New York