William Freret (1804 – June 14, 1864) was Mayor of New Orleans from May 10, 1840 to Apr. 4, 1842, and again from Feb. 27, 1843 to May 12, 1844.
He was born in New Orleans, and was of mixed English and French descent: his father was an English merchant who settled in New Orleans and married a Creole woman. His father built on the boy's natural mechanical talent, sending him to Europe to be educated in engineering and the mechanical arts. He returned to New Orleans and eventually succeeded to his father's business of compressing cotton for shipment abroad. Under his direction, the Freret Cotton Press Company became the first large industrial firm in New Orleans, and propelled him to public visibility and a political career. Despite his Creole mother, he joined the Native American party, a new political group that sought to limit the influence on public affairs of Creoles and other groups viewed as "foreign"; under its banner he won the 1840 election by 1,051 votes to the 942 of his predecessor Charles Genois.
His meticulous temperament made him one of the most efficient mayors in New Orleans' history; he was a hands-on administrator notorious for his surprise inspections of city facilities, for example. His term was marked by the continuation of the city's recovery from the combined effects of the borrowing and spending of previous mayors and the nationwide economic crisis of 1837, and hampered by the curious administration he inherited, in which the city was divided into three autonomous — and often acrimoniously competing — "Municipalities". Despite these difficulties, he succeeded in establishing a free public school system and obtaining backing for it at the state level: this is considered to be his greatest achievement.
At the expiration of his term he ran for re-election but lost to Denis Prieur, a former mayor; who, however, was mayor for only eight months, resigning to take a state office; Freret filled the remainder of Prieur's term.
He ran for a third term in the elections of 1844, but they seem to have been marked by widespread fraud, and he lost to Joseph Edgard Montegut. In 1850, he was appointed Collector of the Port of New Orleans by President Zachary Taylor.
Freret is buried in New Orleans, Louisiana, in St. Patrick Cemetery. Freret Street in New Orleans is named for him. [1]
| Preceded by Charles Genois |
Mayor of New Orleans 1840–1842 |
Succeeded by Denis Prieur |
| Preceded by Denis Prieur |
Mayor of New Orleans 1843–1844 |
Succeeded by Joseph Edgard Montegut |
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