William S. Mason

Who was William S. Mason?

William Spencer Mason served as mayor of Portland, Oregon, from 1891 to 1894 and 1898 to 1899.

Mason was born in Virginia in 1832. After moving to Oregon, he established the Mason–Ehrman Grocery Company, and later was president of the Portland National Bank. At the beginning of his first term as mayor, the city council was expanded from nine to 16 members, under a new city charter.

He began his second term as Portland mayor on July 1, 1898, but died before completing it. He died on March 27, 1899, after an illness lasting about six weeks.