James Stephens Speed (February 14, 1811 – August 7, 1860) was the ninth
Mayor of
Louisville, Kentucky.
Life
His father, John Speed, moved to
Jefferson County in about 1795 and established a farm on Salt River Rd. (which became Dixie Highway), about 9 miles south of Louisville. James Speed moved to Louisville in his late teens and within a few years became a partner in a building and railroad contracting firm, Pickett and Speed.
He was elected to the
Kentucky House of Representatives
The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form ...
in 1843, and appointed a
United States marshal by president
Zachary Taylor in 1849. He was served as mayor of Louisville from April 26, 1852, until April 1855. The rules governing the office were confusing, and Speed was actually re-elected by popular vote each year of his term, yet never awarded an election certificate. Speed argued that his original election meant his term lasted until 1856, but a resolution in 1855 called for a new election that year. The election was won by
Know-Nothing candidate
John Barbee. Speed did not run in the election, believing he would remain mayor anyway, but Barbee was recognized as mayor by the city council, overriding Speed's veto. Speed appealed but ultimately lost at the
Kentucky Supreme Court.
The Know-Nothings were inspired by editorials of the ''
Louisville Daily Courier
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
'', which opposed Speed for his
Catholicism (he was a Catholic convert), a major local controversy of the time (Speed was the first Catholic mayor). In 1856 Speed moved to Chicago, where he spent the remainder of his life. As mayor, he was chiefly concerned with public works projects, such as the water works and street improvement.
Speed died on August 7, 1860, in Chicago.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Speed, James S.
1811 births
1860 deaths
Converts to Roman Catholicism
Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives
Mayors of Louisville, Kentucky
Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky
United States Marshals
19th-century American legislators