"The State Legislature of 1937 authorized a Commission to inquire into the Consolidation of Town and City Governments and to suggest a charter for a new government. This Commission reported back to the 1945 session a Charter for the recommended single government. This Charter was a new instrument devised for a changed problem in self-government, but it was based on the same three principles stated by the Reverend Hooker in 1638. Thus you will see as you study this handbook, that the final authority for all policies lies in the representatives of the people, the Board of Representatives, the Board of Finance and the Board of Education. The executive branch of the government, the Mayor, and his department heads, are limited to carrying out the decisions of the elected Boards. This Charter was adopted by referendum in 1947 and went into effect in April, 1949.
"Stamford is our town. Its government is our government. It will be as well-run as we really want it to be and as badly-run as we let it be. But our responsibility today is much greater than a matter of well or badly-paved streets or a tax rate which goes up or down. We are the guardians of the hope of the free people of the world. Our country can be no better than the sum of all the towns like ours, and our town can be no better than we, its people, are willing to make it. It is an exciting challenge for everyone of us in these years of decision."
~ by Louise Seeley, The League of Women Voters of Stamford,
Connecticut and a member of the 1st Board of Representatives (1st District)
FOR MORE HISTORY OF STAMFORD AND ITS BOARD OF REPRESENTATIVES -
Excerpt from Know Your Own Town, publication of the Stamford League of Women Voters, 1943
Consolidation - 50 Years in the Making
Annual Report of the City of Stamford - Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1950
Stamford Governmental Directory for the Year 1949 (City and Town Officers)
Minutes of the First Board of Representatives Meeting - Held April 15, 1949 and continued to April 21, 1949.
Mayors of the City of Stamford
Annie Summerville - Longest serving Board Member - since December 1, 1977 ( replacing John Zelinsky - Longest serving Board Member - April 4, 1977 to November 30, 2021)
Board of Representatives Trivia
Mission Statement of the Board of Representatives - Adopted September 12, 1998
Enjoy more Stamford History by visiting The Stamford Historical Society, Inc.'s site at http://www.stamfordhistory.org/