List of mayors of Robbins, Illinois

Mayor of Robbins
Incumbent Darren E. Bryant since 2021
Formation	1921
First holder	Thomas J Kellar

Following is a list of mayors of Robbins, Illinois, founded December 14, 1917, the first municipality in the north that was entirely governed by African-Americans.[1] The first election was held on January 15, 1918 with Thomas J. Kellar elected as the mayor and six trustees empaneled (Richard Flowers, Leroy P. Thomas, R. H. Bryant, Jerry Taylor, Edward Brown, George Winburn).[2]

Number	Image	Mayor	Years	Notes/Citation
1		Thomas J. Kellar (1st term)	Jan 1918 1919–1920	[3]
2		R. H. Bryant	1921–1922	[4][5]
3		Richard Flowers (1st term)	1923–1924	[6][7]
(1)		Thomas J. Kellar (2nd term)	1925–1926	[8]
(3)		Richard Flowers (2nd term)	1927–1928	[9]
4		Samuel E. Nichols	1929–1930	[10][11][12]
(1)		Thomas J. Kellar (3rd term)	1931–1932	[13]
5		John S. Richardson (1st term)	1933–1940	[14][15][16][17]
6		Hollis L. Reeves	1941–1950	[18][19][20][21][22]
(5)		John S. Richardson (2nd term)	1951–1952	[23]
7		Theodore Hendricks	1953–1956	[24][25]
8		Ernest Maxey	1957–1969	[26][27]
9		Marion L. Smith	1969–1981	[28]
10		Richard Ballantine	1981–1985
11		John W. Hamilton	1985–1989	[29][30]
12		Irene Brodie	1989–2013	[31]
13		Tyrone Ward	2013–2021	[32]
14		Darren E. Bryant	2021–	[33]

References

1. "The Saga of Chicago's Only Negro Town". The Pittsburgh Courier. October 15, 1938. ...according to state historians, acquired the unique distinction of being the only municipality of its kind in the so-called far north, being entirely governed by coloured officials.
2. "Negro Colony in East Makes Good - Thos. J. Kellar, Founder Highly Honored". The Denver Star. December 11, 1917.
3. "Election passes Quickly in Cook County Villages". The Chicago Tribune. April 16, 1919.
4. "Klenk Dropped by Robbins For "Neglect Duty"". Blue Island Sun-Standard. October 13, 1921 – via NewspaperArchive.
5. "Bryant Is President Of Robbins". Blue Island Sun-Standard. April 19, 1921 – via NewspaperArchive.
6. Illinois blue book, 1923-1924. State of Illinois. p. 547.
7. Robinson, Pelzona (May 8, 1954). "Our Next Door Neighbors". The Robbins Eagle. Mr. Richard Flowers was the third mayor of the village....
8. Illinois blue book, 1925-1926. State of Illinois. p. 620.
9. Illinois blue book, 1927-1928. State of Illinois. p. 703.
10. "Robbins History". Robbins History Museum. Retrieved January 15, 2022. Actress Nichelle Nichols' grandfather, Samuel G. Nichols (a white man), was one of the village's original settlers who was married a black woman. Nichelle Nichols who portrayed Lt. Uhura in the original Star Trek television series also was hired by NASA to begin finding and recruiting qualified blacks for today's NASA Space program. Nichelle was born in Robbins in a two-story frame house built by her grandparents. Her father, Samuel E. Nichols, became the mayor of Robbins, IL in 1929.
11. Parish, Norman (July 15, 2015). "Robbins Historian Promotes Village's Rich History to Inspire Youth". The Weekly Citizen . Her father, Samuel E. Nichols, served as the village's mayor from 1929-31.
12. Illinois blue book, 1929-1930. State of Illinois. p. 669.
13. Illinois blue book, 1931-1932. State of Illinois. p. 634.
14. Illinois blue book, 1933-1934. State of Illinois. p. 656.
15. Illinois blue book, 1935-1936. State of Illinois. p. 838.
16. Illinois blue book, 1937-1938. State of Illinois. p. 628.
17. Illinois blue book, 1939-1940. State of Illinois. p. 684.
18. Illinois blue book, 1941-1942. State of Illinois. p. 669.
19. Illinois blue book, 1943-1944. State of Illinois. p. 548.
20. Illinois blue book, 1945-1946. State of Illinois. p. 716.
21. Illinois blue book, 1947-1948. State of Illinois. p. 696.
22. Illinois blue book, 1949-1950. State of Illinois. p. 697.
23. Illinois blue book, 1951-1952. State of Illinois. p. 708.
24. Illinois blue book, 1953-1954. State of Illinois. p. 729.
25. Illinois blue book, 1955-1956. State of Illinois. p. 759.
26. "Ex-mayor of Robbins sentenced to Prison". Suburbanite Economist . September 22, 1974. Ernest Maxey, 58, mayor of Robbins from 1957 to 1969...
27. Illinois blue book, 1957-1958. State of Illinois. p. 805.
28. O'Brien, Ken (November 13, 1994). "Robbins Honors A Remarkable Citizen". The Chicago Tribune. ...the late Marion L. Smith, Robbins mayor from 1969 to 1981
29. "Village is $6 million in debt". Alton Telegraph. November 14, 1985 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
30. Elsner, David (April 6, 1989). "6 Mayors Lose Bid For Re-Election". The Chicago Tribune. Robbins: Village Clerk Irene Brodie, an administrator at Moraine Valley Community College, defeated Mayor John Hamilton, an insurance broker, by a 939-639 vote...Hamilton was seeking a second term.
31. Slowik, Ted (January 24, 2018). "Longtime Robbins Mayor Irene Brodie remembered for public service". The Chicago Tribune. Brodie was elected to six terms, serving as mayor from 1989 to 2013.
32. Chiang, Erica (November 4, 2011). "Former Mayor Tyrone Ward on his past and what the future may hold". The Southland Journal.
33. Gibson, Tammy (May 7, 2021). "Darren E. Bryant Elected First and Youngest African American Mayor of Historic Robbins, IL". Chicago Defender.