Existing comment:
Mayor and City Council (Common Council):
San Diego was incorporated as a city in early 1859 by the state legislature. Joshua H. Bean was elected Mayor, June 16, 1850. As Mayor, he chose a council of five members. They appropriated the east room, in the rear of the building, for the mayor's office. The clerk and common council took charge of the building and occupied the west room.
Under the original city charter of 1850, the mayor had judicial powers in addition to his executive authority. The original charter provided that the common council establish and fix the salaries of the mayor and other city officials. City records indicate that the mayor and city council continued transacting city business from within this building throughout the 1850s and 1860s. |