Jabez Comstock Knight (July 31, 1815 – April 6, 1900) was mayor of
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
for five terms, 1859-1864.
Early life
Knight was born in
Centerville, Rhode Island
West Warwick is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 31,012 at the 2020 census.
West Warwick was incorporated in 1913, making it the youngest town in the state. Prior to 1913, the town, situated on the wester ...
.
[ His family moved to Providence in 1830, when he was 15.][ He was employed by cotton merchants Orray Taft & Co.
]
Career
He became Paymaster General for Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
for 24 years, and was on the board of trustees of the Providence Reform School[ Knight was a member of the Providence Common Council, representing the Fourth Ward, 1849-1852. He was elected to the Providence Board of Aldermen for the Sixth Ward, 1854-1858.]
Mayor
In May 1859 Knight ran for mayor against a Democratic opponent. He won 1,835 votes to 1,100. He then ran four more times unopposed, then declined nomination for a sixth term.[
As Mayor, Knight demolished the Town House on Benefit Street that served as police station, and opened a new Central Police Station on Canal Street in April 1861. Knight introduced ]horse-drawn streetcar
A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is an Animal-powered transport, animal-powered (usually horse) tram or streetcar.
Summary
The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of ...
s in Providence in 1863.[
Knight served as mayor during the ]Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. During this time Providence industries provided uniforms, blankets, biscuits, rifles, and tools to the Union war effort.[
]
Personal life
Knight married Catherine A. Taft on September 28, 1842 and had three daughters.
In the 1880s, Ex-Mayor Knight spent his summers at a cottage in Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...
, on Bellevue Avenue.
References
External links
Biography of Knight at Providence City Hall
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Jabez Comstock
1900 deaths
1815 births
Mayors of Providence, Rhode Island
Burials at Swan Point Cemetery
Rhode Island Republicans
Providence City Council members
19th-century American politicians