Nicholas Dockstader (January 4, 1802 – November 9, 1871) was the third

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 ...

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. He served only one year in 1840. Dockstader was born in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

to Jacob and Angela (Hanson) Dockstader. Nicholas had two brothers, Richard and Butler. Dockstader and his brothers moved to

in 1826. He soon became the leading fur trader in the Northeast Ohio region after he began dealing hats, caps, and furs to the local Indians. In 1834 he became the treasurer of the Cleveland & Newburgh Railway. In 1835 Dockstader became the treasurer of the village of

. He was then elected

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...

after the city was incorporated in 1836 and elected to that position again in 1838. From 1837 to 1838 Dockstader was chosen as a delegate to the county and state Whig conventions. It was because of this popularity that he was elected mayor in 1840. He served one term as mayor, after which he returned to private business. Dockstader was married to Harriet Judd (1805–1837). Their 5 children were William, Richard, Charles, Julia, and Elisabeth. Dockstader died in

and is buried in Woodland Cemetery.

References

* ''The Encyclopedia Of Cleveland History'' by Cleveland Bicentennial Commission (Cleveland, Ohio), David D. Van Tassel (Editor), and John J. Grabowski (Editor) Dockstader, Nicohlas 1802 births 1871 deaths Ohio Whigs 19th-century American politicians Burials at Woodland Cemetery (Cleveland) {{Ohio-mayor-stub