This is a list of mayors of Ventura, California , beginning with Ventura's incorporation as a city in 1866.
The individual who had the longest tenure in office was Charles W. Petit, who served as mayor for 15+1⁄2 years from 1953 to 1969. When Petit left office, he was, at age 87, the oldest mayor in the United States. Prior to Petit, the mayor with the longest tenure was John S. Collins, who held the position for 14 years from 1890 to 1904.
The first woman to serve as mayor was Harriet Kosmo Henson, who served two terms from 1978 to 1982. Since that time, three other women have served as mayor: Christy Weir (2007–2009), Cheryl Heitmann (2013–2015), Sofia Rubalcava (2020-).
The current mayor is Sofia Rubalcava, who assumed the position in December 2020.
# | Name | Term | Notes | Sources |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Walter Scott Chaffee [1] | 4/2/1866–1/2/1867 | Chaffee was born in 1835 in Madison County, New York. He moved to Ventura in 1860 and, in 1863, he opened a general merchandise and hardware store at Main and Palm Streets. The city was incorporated on April 2, 1866. The initial board of trustees first board of trustees included Chaffee, Angel G. Escandon (who represented the area in the California Legislature), and Juan Camarillo. Chafee died in 1894. | [2] [3] |
2 | Ysidro Obiols [1] | 1/2/1867–4/22/1867 | Born c. 1822. Obiols ran a hotel, saloon and stage depot in Ventura. In 1866, upon the incorporation of Ventura, he became the city's first justice of the peace. In January 1867, he became the second president of the city's board of trustees. | [3] [4] |
3 | Fernando Tico Jr. [1] | 4/22/1867–5/18/1868 | Born 1836, son of the recipient of a Spanish land grant referred to as Rancho Ojai | [3] |
4 | Angel Gonzales Escandon [1] | 5/18/1868–10/10/1869 | Born 1833; died 1884. He also represented Ventura in the California Legislature. | [3] |
5 | Jesse Allen Shaw [1] | 11/10/1869–4/4/1870 | Born 1827 in Rupert, Vermont; father of Selwyn Shaw. Died 1919 in Ventura. | [3] |
6 | C. H. Bailey [1] | 4/4/1870–2/25/1871 | Merchant born in Massachusetts c. 1827. | [3] |
7 | Lemuel Clarke McKeeby [1] | 2/25/1871–11/3/1873 | Born in New York City in 1825. Moved to Ventura in October 1866 and was one of the organizers of the Bank of Ventura. Died 1913. | [3] [5] |
8 | E. M. Jones | 11/3/1873–3/25/1874 | [3] | |
9 | P. V. McCarty | 3/25/1874–9/10/1874 | [3] | |
10 | William Ayres | 9/10/1874–3/18/1876 | [3] | |
11 | Angel S. Escandon [6] | 3/18/1876–1/7/1878 | [3] | |
12 | Henry Spear | 1/7/1878–1/3/1882 | [3] | |
13 | T. H. Daley | 1/3/1882–1/4/1886 | [3] | |
14 | Paul Charlebois | 1/4/1886–1/6/1890 | Born in Montreal in 1855. Moved to Ventura from San Francisco in 1871. Owner of a hardware store. Also served as Ventura County Treasurer in 1888 and as Ventura County Sheriff from 1894 to 1903. Died in 1914. | [3] [7] [8] |
15 | John S. Collins | 1/6/1890–1/4/1904 | His 14-year tenure as mayor was the longest in city history until Charles w. Petit served for 15+1⁄2 years. | [3] |
16 | W. L. Lewis | 1/4/1904–4/15/1907 | [3] | |
17 | William McGuire | 4/15/1907–9/21/1908 | [3] | |
18 | Floyd Putnam Shaw | 2/23/1910–4/18/1911 | Born c. 1858 in Wisconsin. Son of Jesse Allen Shaw and brother of Selwyn Shaw. The family moved to Ventura in 1868. He wrote "A Few Recollections of the Early Days of San Buenaventura" in 1942. Died c. 1954 in Ventura. | [3] [9] |
19 | William McGuire | 4/18/1911–4/19/1915 | [3] | |
20 | Erwin Kellogg | 4/19/1915–4/21/1919 | [3] | |
21 | Malvern Dimmick | 4/21/1919–4/16/1923 | Born 1864 in Onawa, Iowa. Moved to Ventura in 1906, working as a grocer and later as manager of the Ventura Wharf and Warehouse Co. Also served as a justice of the peace 1922–1934. Died 1934 in Ventura. | [10] |
22 | Charles Rea | 4/16/1923–1/30/1928 | [3] | |
23 | George Archibald Randall | 4/18/1927–6/8/1931 | Born in 1887 in Alameda County, California. He was president of the Darden & Randall Buick automobile dealership, an artist and author, and an authority on western ranch life and American Indian subjects. Died 1941 at Foster Memorial Hospital. | [3] [11] |
24 | W. O. Hedley | 6/8/1931–12/21/1931 | [3] | |
? | David J. Reese | 1931 | Not included on the City's "History of Mayors" list | [12] |
25 | James S. Blackstock | 12/20/1931–1/19/32 | Born 1870. Died in 1932 at his home in Ventura after only one month as mayor. Also served as president of chamber of commerce, operated a grocery, and owned lemon ranches | [3] [13] |
26 | George V. Hartman | 1/25/1932–4/24/1933 | [3] [14] | |
27 | Frank J. Dennis | 4/24/1933–8/26/1936 | Born c. 1882. | [3] |
28 | George A. Newell, Jr. | 8/26/1936–4/26/37 | [3] | |
29 | Marcus S. Johnson | 4/26/37–4/28/1941 | Later moved to Turlock, California; died there in 1958. | [3] [15] |
30 | Harold Young Carrico | 4/28/1941–2/13/1945 | Born 1893 in Florida, Missouri. He became a prominent builder in Ventura. Died 1952 in Washington County, Utah. Buried at Ivy Lawn Cemetery in Ventura. | [3] |
31 | Edwin Lee Gardner II | 2/13/1945–4/27/1953 | Born c. 1895 in Virginia. Worked in the oil business. | [3] |
32 | Ernest Joel Pate | 4/27/1953–9/14/1953 | Born 1896; died 1988. Buried at Ivy Lawn. | [3] |
33 | Charles Wesley Petit | 9/14/1953–4/1969 | Born 1881 in Ramey, Pennsylvania, died 1973 in Ventura. Served on Ventura City Council from 1948-1969. When he left office, he was the oldest living mayor in the United States | [16] [17] [18] |
34 | Albert R. Albinger | 4/1969–1/1974 | He was a 53-year-old realtor when he was selected as mayor in April 1969. | [3] [19] |
35 | David D. Eaton | 1/7/1974–1/5/1976 | [3] | |
36 | Eugene Kountz | 1/5/1976–1/9/1978 | Born 1932. Later filed and lost a wrongful death action against a CHP officer in connection with the shooting death of his son. | [3] [20] |
37 | Harriet Farrell Kosmo Henson | 1/1978–1/1982 | Born 1932 in Keene, New Hampshire. Moved to Ventura in 1964, served on City Council from 1976-1984, and became the city's first woman mayor in January 1978. Died in 1999 at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. | [3] [21] |
38 | John Allen McWherter | 1/4/1982–1/1984 | Born in 1915 in Oklahoma. Served on City Council for 18 years from 1973-1991. He cited 1974 efforts to slow the city's growth as his proudest achievement. | [3] [22] |
39 | Rolland Dennis Orrock | 1984–1986 | Attorney born in 1943 in Los Angeles | [3] |
40 | John M. Sullard | 1986–1987 | Served on the Ventura City Council, 1982–1987. Later served as city manager of Boulder City, Nevada | [23] |
41 | James L. Monahan | 12/1987–12/1989 | A Korean War veteran and graduate of Ventura High School and Ventura College. He has been the owner of American Welding Company and American Hot Tap for 40 years. He served on Ventura City Council from 1977 to present and was selected as mayor in December 1987. | [24] [25] |
42 | Richard L. Francis | 1989–1991 | Served on Ventura City Council 1989–1991. A slow growth advocate and co-architect of the Save Open-Space and Agricultural Resources initiative, which prohibits changes to some rural and agricultural land uses without voter approval. | [26] [27] |
43 | Gregory L. Carson | 12/2/1991–12/6/1993 | A fifth-generation Ventura resident, he was a 33-year-old nursery owner and lobbyist for the farm industry when he was selected as mayor in December 1991. He survived a shooting by a burglar at his home in October 2015 | [28] [29] [30] |
44 | Tom Buford | 12/1993–12/1995 | Labor attorney and former president of the Ventura Chamber of Commerce | [31] |
45 | Clifton "Jack" Tingstrom | 12/1995–12/1997 | Born in 1935. Served on City Council 1991–1999. Died April 2018 | [32] [33] |
46 | Jim Friedman | 12/1997–12/1999 | ||
47 | Sandy Smith | 12/1999-12/2001 | He was a teacher at Buena Vista High School when he was selected as mayor; later worked as a land use consultant for Sespe Consulting | [34] [35] |
48 | Ray Di Guilio | 12/2001–12/2003 | Spent 30 years as an administrator with the Ventura County Community College District | [36] |
49 | Brian Brennan | 12/2003–12/2005 | Irish-born restaurateur; later appointed to the Ventura Port District Board of Commissioners | [37] [38] |
50 | Carl E. Morehouse | 12/2005–12/2007 | Served on City Council for 17 years 1999–2016 | [39] |
51 | Christy Weir | 12/2007–12/2009 | Elected to City Council in 2003; selected as mayor in December 2007 | [40] |
52 | William Fulton | 12/2009–12/2011 | Served on City Council, 2003–2011; selected as mayor in December 2009; later served as planning director for the City of San Diego and as director of Rice University's Kinder Institute for Urban Research | [41] |
53 | Mike Tracy | 12/2011–12/2013 | Elected to City Council in 2009; selected as mayor in December 2011 | [42] |
54 | Cheryl Heitmann | 12/2013–12/2015 | Elected to City Council in 2011; selected as mayor in December 2013 | [43] |
55 | Erik Nasarenko | 12/2015–12/2017 | Elected to City Council in 2013; selected as mayor in December 2015 | [44] |
56 | Neil Andrews | 12/2017–12/2018 | Elected to City Council in 2001; selected as mayor December 2017 | [45] |
57 | Matt LaVere | 12/2018– 12/2020 | Elected to City Council in 2016; selected as mayor December 2018 | [46] |
58 | Sofia Rubalcava | 12/2020– | Incumbent - Elected to City Council in 2018 ; selected as mayor December 2020 | [47] |
Ventura, formally known as San Buenaventura, is a city on the Central Coast of California and the county seat of Ventura County. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist destination, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and resorts.
Montalvo was an unincorporated village in Ventura County, California, founded in approximately 1887. It was incorporated into the city of Ventura, California, in 2012. Montalvo is located in the southern portion of the city of Ventura, on the northern bank of the Santa Clara River. It is bounded by Victoria Avenue to the west, Ralston Street to the north, Johnson Drive to the east, and the Ventura Freeway to the south.
The Ventura County Courthouse, known since 1974 as Ventura City Hall, is a historic building in Ventura, California. It is located on a hill at the top of California Street, overlooking the city's downtown district with views of the Santa Barbara Channel and Channel Islands. It was the first building in the City of Ventura to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has also received historic designations at the state, county and city levels.
Emma Wood State Beach is a California State Beach in Ventura, California. It is located on the Santa Barbara Channel on the west side of the Ventura River estuary and south of the railroad tracks of the Coast Line and the US Highway 101 freeway.
East Ventura is a passenger rail station in the city of Ventura, California. Passengers board here for Metrolink's Ventura County Line going towards Los Angeles Union Station. Located in the eastern Ventura neighborhood of Montalvo, the platform is just off the main coast route on the Santa Paula Branch line which is owned by the Ventura County Transportation Commission.
Wagon Wheel is a densely populated, planned neighborhood of Oxnard, California at the intersection of U.S. Route 101 and Oxnard Boulevard. The neighborhood was originally developed as an office, motel, and restaurant complex named Wagon Wheel Junction with a convenient roadside location near the historic community of El Rio. The site in Ventura County became a popular stop for travelers between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, particularly during its heyday in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The entire site was demolished in 2011 to begin the development of the community with 1,500 residential units.
The Carnegie Art Museum is a public art museum owned by the City of Oxnard, California in the building originally occupied by the Oxnard Public Library. The Neo-Classical building, located adjacent to Oxnard's Plaza Park, opened in 1907 as the Oxnard Public Library and was converted into an art museum in 1986. In July 1971, it became the first building in Ventura County and the first Carnegie library in California to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital, now known as The Elizabeth Bard Memorial Building, is a historic building in downtown Ventura, California. Built in 1901, it is a Mission Revival structure featuring covered terraces and a covered porch with a three-story bell tower at the southeast corner. The building was listed as Ventura Historic Landmark No. 19 in 1976 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
William "Bill" Fulton is an American author, urban planner, and politician. He served as mayor of Ventura, California, from 2009 to 2011, and later as the Planning Director for the City of San Diego. In October 2014, he became the head of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University in Houston, Texas. He is considered an advocate of the "Smart Growth" movement in urban planning. In 2009, he was named to Planetizen's list of "Top 100 Urban Thinkers". He is the founder and publisher of the California Planning & Development Report.
The Ventura County Star is a daily newspaper published in Camarillo, California and serves all of Ventura County. It is owned by Gannett, the largest publisher of newspapers in the United States. It is a successor to a number of daily newspapers published around Ventura County during the 20th century.
The City of Ventura Historic Landmarks and Districts consist of buildings, sites, and neighborhoods designated by the City of Ventura, California, as historic landmarks and districts.
Ortega Adobe is a historic adobe house built in 1857 and located on Main Street on the west side of Ventura, California, not far from the mouth of the Ventura River. It was designated in 1974 as the City of Ventura's Historic Landmark No. 2. It is owned by the City and operated as a self-guided historical site.
The Ventura Pier, formerly known as the Ventura Wharf and the San Buenaventura Wharf, is a wooden pier located on the Pacific Ocean in Ventura, California. The pier has been designated as Ventura Historic Landmark No. 20. It is the oldest pier in California.
The Father Serra statue in Ventura, California, depicting Junípero Serra, the founder of Mission San Buenaventura, was commissioned by Ventura County through the Works Progress Administration as part of the Federal Art Project. The statue, sculpted by Uno John Palo Kangas, was placed in a prominent location in a public park across the street from the Ventura County Courthouse in 1936. After the Courthouse was repurposed as Ventura City Hall, the concrete Father Serra statue was designated as City of Ventura Historic Landmark No. 3 in 1974. As deterioration of the concrete statue became a concern, a wood replica was created by local carvers and used to make a bronze cast. The concrete statue was replaced by the bronze cast in 1989. The wood replica was set in the atrium of the city hall for public display.
The Ventura County Historic Landmarks & Points of Interest consist of buildings, sites, and neighborhoods designated by Ventura County Cultural Heritage Board as historic landmarks and points of interest in Ventura County, California. The county board of supervisors created the Cultural Heritage Board in 1966 and in August 1968, two sites were designated: the Faulkner House near Santa Paula; and the Edwards Adobe in Saticoy. The scope was established to include the entire county: both cities and the unincorporated areas. The cities of Fillmore, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Simi Valley, and Thousand Oaks have the county Cultural Heritage Board advise them and those designations are listed here. The cities of Moorpark, Ojai, Santa Paula, and Ventura established their own separate historic designation systems with the City of Ventura Historic Landmarks and Districts developing into an extensive list. The Port Hueneme Historical Society Museum houses historical artifacts, photographs and information on the history of the Hueneme area. The museum is in the Hueneme Bank Building.
The Serra Cross, sometimes also known as the Cross on the Hill or the Grant Park Cross, is a Christian cross on a hill known as "La Loma de la Cruz" in Ventura, California. The site is in Serra Cross Park, a one-acre parcel within the larger Grant Park that overlooks downtown Ventura, the Santa Barbara Channel, and Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands.
The Peirano Market, also known as Peirano's Grocery and Peirano Store, is a historic building in Ventura, California. Located across the street from the Mission San Buenaventura, the red brick structure was built in 1877 and has ornamental relief brickwork and a mansard, Spanish revival tile roof.
Eugene Preston Foster, commonly known as E. P. Foster, was a rancher, entrepreneur, banker, and philanthropist in Ventura County, California.
Stephen Bennett is an American activist, educator, and politician serving as a member of the California State Assembly from the 37th district as a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to his tenure in the state legislature, he was active in local politics in Ventura, California, and Ventura County, California, with him serving on the city council and board of supervisors.