Mayor James G Barry

https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6302569

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_G._Barry

Barry was elected in April 1849 as the mayor of St. Louis, for a term of one year.[citation needed]

Within a month of being elected, the Great Fire of 1849 in St. Louis occurred. On May 17, 1849, a small fire broke out and quickly spread, causing approximately five million dollars in damage. Beginning on one of the steamboats in the St. Louis embankment, it soon spread to destroying twenty-three boats and the majority of the business district. In order to combat this and help alleviate some of the hardships now faced, Barry authorized various new pieces of legislation. Some of these new laws allowed citizens to receive up to six thousand dollars for immediate relief and protection of their property. Others greatly effected the boats passing through the city, with all firewood requiring inspection before unloaded from the boat and ships with over 300 pounds of gun powder refusing landing rights within the city.

Around the same time as the fire and following, cholera struck the city, killing as many as 639 in the first few weeks. At the beginning of 1849, St. Louis was a growing metropolitan area, with a population of 64,000 and many immigrants arriving everyday. However, many of these new inhabitants had left their homeland sick, and brought the disease with them (if they survived the boat ride). In response, Barry created the Citizens Committee in effort to fight the plague. This committee was given the fifty thousand dollars from the City council, and worked with Barry to establish strong quarantine regulations and other means of protection. Because of these two experiences, people respected him very highly, with the newspapers praising how he handled both disasters.

In addition, Barry worked to create a German newspaper printed in the German language. This was a result of an increase in the German immigrant population. This newspaper was delivered to all city ordinances.