| Hugh O'Brien | |
| Office: | Mayor of Boston[1] |
| Term Start: | January 5, 1885 |
| Term End: | January 7, 1889 |
| Predecessor: | Augustus Pearl Martin |
| Successor: | Thomas N. Hart |
| Office1: | Chairman of the Boston Board of Aldermen |
| Term1: | 1883 |
| Predecessor1: | Solomon B. Stebbins |
| Successor1: | Charles Varney Whitten |
| Term Start2: | 1879 |
| Term End2: | 1881 |
| Predecessor2: | Solomon B. Stebbins |
| Successor2: | Solomon B. Stebbins |
| Office3: | Member of the Boston Board of Aldermen |
| Term Start3: | 1875 |
| Term End3: | 1883 |
| Birth Date: | 13 July 1827 |
| Birth Place: | Ireland |
| Death Place: | Massachusetts |
| Party: | Democratic |
Hugh O'Brien (July 13, 1827 – August 1, 1895) served as the mayor of Boston from 1884 to 1888. O'Brien is notable as Boston's first Irish and Catholic mayor, having emigrated from Ireland to America in the early 1830s. O'Brien was the editor of the Shipping and Commercial List and served as a Boston alderman from 1875 to 1883.[2] He was chairman of the Boston Board of Aldermen from 1879 through 1881 and again in 1883.
Born in Ireland on July 13, 1827, O'Brien emigrated to America in the early 1830s as a young child. He dropped out of public school at the age of twelve to pursue a career in newspapers,[3] eventually becoming the editor of the Shipping and Commercial List.
O'Brien began his political career in 1875 after being elected to the Boston Board of Aldermen.
During his time as alderman, he was known for his advocacy toward public parks, having a hand in the city's acquisition of Franklin Park and the Back Bay land. He was a champion of the working class and helped pass legislation regulating the pay of men under city contractors. He also sought to decrease expenditures within the city, in order to lower taxes.[4]
After having lost the 1883 Boston mayoral election to Republican Augustus Pearl Martin by 1,544 votes, O'Brien defeated Martin in a 1884 rematch by a margin of 3,326 votes. He was the first Irishman to become mayor of Boston.
O'Brien enacted numerous reforms and focused on controlling their subsequent expenses. He won reelection in 1885, 1886, and 1887, before being defeated by three-time challenger Republican Thomas N. Hart in the election of 1888.
O'Brien was appointed by Mayor Nathan Matthews Jr. to Boston's Board of Survey, which was tasked with planning the city's streets.
He died on August 1, 1895, at the age of 68.