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"Born in Killingly, Conn., October 3, 1820; died January
19, 1894; served during 1871-1872.
He was called the democratic and
citizens' candidate, and had for his competitor, Mr. George O. Carpenter. He
was a man of high character, a lawyer by profession, and was universally
respected, but he did not seem to have been a man of great force, for
otherwise he would in all probability have bee n elected to a second term.
The establishment of a new
board of health was the chief act of the municipal government during his
administration. Another important event was the extension of the water
system, when in
1871 the supply of water in
Lake Cochituate had been found insufficient to supply the growing wants
of Boston. From this period dated a systematic development of the water
:system.
By a legislative act of 1871,
a new city department was established, known as the Department for the
Survey and Inspection of Buildings. The department had hardly been organized
when the Great Fire
of 1872 occurred which led to many modifications of the building laws.
It was probably the dissatisfaction with the manner in which Mayor Gaston
managed the Fire Department during the Great Fire that defeated him for a
second term.
The expenditures under Mayor Gaston rose
to a very high figure, which has been ascribed partly to extravagance and
partly to the demand for better service. At any rate, the expenditures,
which had stood at more than $12,000,000 in 1871, rose to nearly $15,000,000
in the following year. Part of this rise, of course, was due to the Great
Fire."
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