When Richmond Virginia had 2 mayors

Did you know that Richmond used to have two mayors simultaneously? >> I don't think I knew that. >> So, this happened on April 27th, 1870. So, the Civil War had ended only 5 years earlier. So, anything political was like very attentionw worthy at this time, more so than usual. So, at the center of

this fight were two men who both claimed to be the mayor of Richmond. George Cahoun, who was the Republican mayor. Richmond city government selected Henry K. Ellison as mayor, but Kahune refused to leave. And for a period of time, Richmond essentially had two mayors. There was literally two city governments and there was two competing police

forces. >> What? Because the police department was split in half on who they backed. >> Ah. Oh yeah. This is rowdy times. >> Yes. So the whole city split in half and there was basically two local governments operating individually of each other. And so this became known as Richmond's municipal war. So eventually

the two sides agreed to let the Virginia Supreme Court determine who legally controlled the city. Hundreds of people crowded into the capital to hear the vote on this from the Supreme Court. There were lawyers, there were politicians, there were reporters. All the police officers came from the competing factions and stood on opposite

sides. Members of the general assembly and all of Richmond's residents. So, anybody who couldn't get into the building overflowed out onto the lawn of the state capital. 11:00 strikes in the morning. Everybody's waiting for the court. The clerk had arrived. The judges were taking their places. The room was completely silent. And then there was a