List of mayors of Fairbanks, Alaska

The following provides a listing of the individuals who have served as mayor of Fairbanks, Alaska,[1] as well as the ten mayors of the Fairbanks North Star Borough, a county equivalent which includes the city.

Jim Matherly has been mayor of the City of Fairbanks since October 24, 2016. In this June 2016 photo, Matherly is shown speaking with a pair of youngsters while campaigning for the office at a street fair in downtown Fairbanks.

Fairbanks, a home rule city in the U.S. state of Alaska, was founded in 1901. Fairbanks incorporated as a town on November 10, 1903, pursuant to the original laws allowing for communities in Alaska to incorporate. Following changes in those laws during the latter territorial era, Fairbanks began its current designation as a city ca. 1950. When statehood became effective for Alaska in 1959, the Alaska Constitution provided for home rule, a status the citizens of Fairbanks ratified the following year.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough, which encompasses the city and several surrounding towns and villages, was established by an act of the Alaska State Legislature in 1963 (Chapter 52, Session Laws of Alaska 1963), and incorporated on January 1, 1964. The borough seat is in Fairbanks.

Mayors of City of Fairbanks
Steve Thompson (2010)
H. A. Boucher (1973)
Douglas Preston (1953)
Maurice Johnson (1960)

The city mayor was originally elected from amongst the council. This was later changed to the mayor being elected separately by voters for a two-year term, but serving as a figurehead, as the city was administered by a manager. The mayor began serving as the chief administrator of city government, serving a three-year term, in 1992.

Nr. Name Term start Term end
1 E.T. Barnette 1903 1906
2 B.D. Mills 1906 1907
3 J. Barrack 1907 1908
4 Fred Carter 1908 1909
5 Joseph Smith 1909 1909
6 Mel Sabin 1909 1910
7 A.J. Nordale 1910 1911
8 F.S. Gordon 1911 1912
9 Dan Driscoll 1912 1913
10 E.C. Heacock 1913 1913
11 Murray C. Smith[2] 1913 1915
12 Andrew Nerland 1915 1916
13 R.R. Meyers 1916 1917
14 G.M. Smith 1917 1917
15 Henry T. Ray 1917 1918
16 E.E. Suter 1918 1919
17 A.L. Wilbur 1919 1921
18 C.H. Woodward 1921 1922
19 R.W. Ferguson 1922 1923
20 Thomas A. Marquam 1923 1925
21 Dr. Frank De La Vergne 1925 1931
22 Jessie F. Bryant 1931 1933
23 Arnold Nordale 1933 1934
24 E.B. Collins 1934 1938
25 Arthur Leslie Nerland 1938 1940
26 William Growden 1940 1943
27 Howard G. Hughes 1943 1945
28 Alfeld Hjalmar Nordale 1945 1948
29 Ray Kohler 1948 1949
30 Maurice Johnson 1949 1950
31 Robert Hoopes 1950 1952
32 Ralph J. Rivers 1952 1954
33 Douglas Preston 1954 1957
34 Paul B. Haggland 1957 1960
35 Joseph M. Ribar 1960 1962
36 Darrell Brewington 1962 1965
37 Sylvia Ringstad 1965 1966
38 Henry Aristide "Red" Boucher 1966 1970
39 Julian C. Rice 1970 1972
40 Harold Gillam 1972 1978
41 William Ransom Wood 1978 1980
42 Ruth E. Burnett 1980 1982
43 Bill Walley 1982 1988
44 James D. Nordale 1988 1990
45 Wayne S. Nelson 1990 1992
46 James C. Hayes 1992 2001
47 Steve M. Thompson 2001 2007
48 Terry Strle 2007 2010
49 Jerry Cleworth 2010 2013
50 John Eberhart 2013 2016
51 Jim Matherly October 24, 2016 Present

Mayors of Fairbanks North Star Borough
Then-borough mayor Jim Whitaker and current mayor Karl Kassel on the grandstand of the Fairbanks Labor Day parade in 2008. They are flanked by David Guttenberg, Ethan Berkowitz and Scott Kawasaki.
Jim Sampson (2008)
Juanita Helms (1959)
Bil Allen (1977)

The borough mayor's position was originally titled chairman, rather than mayor, until the mid-1970s, given the structure which the legislature had originally established for organized boroughs. The term of office had changed from two years to three years at around the same time. The position is non-partisan.

Nr. Name Term start Term end
1 John D. Schleppegrell 1964 1966
2 Harold Gillam 1966 1968
3 John A. Carlson 1968 1982
4 Bill Allen 1982 1985
5 Juanita Helms 1985 1990
6 Jim Sampson 1990 1997
7 Hank Hove 1997 2000
8 Rhonda Boyles (R) 2000 2003
9 Jim Whitaker (R) 2003 2009
10 Luke T. Hopkins (D) 2009 2015
11 Karl Kassel (I) 2015 2018
12 Bryce Ward (R) 2018 Present

References
  1. "2013 Annual Budget" (PDF). City of Fairbanks. p. 221. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  2. "Former Woodstock Man Elected Mayor of Fairbanks, Alaska". Carleton Sentinel. June 6, 1913.
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