Abraham Oakey Hall

Abraham Oakey Hall (July 26, 1826 – October 7, 1898) was an American politician, lawyer, and writer. He served as Mayor of New York from 1869 to 1872 as a Republican. Hall, known as "Elegant Oakey", was a model of serenity and respectability. Recent historians have disputed the older depiction of Hall as corrupt or as a front man for a corrupt political order.

Hall was born in Albany, New York. His childhood was marked by poverty after the death of his father, a New York merchant, when Hall was 3 years old. In 1840, he entered New York University, and wrote for many newspapers to pay his way through school. He graduated in 1844 with bachelor's and master's degrees. He attended Harvard Law School until 1845 before dropping out to apprentice to finish his legal education. Hall returned to New York in 1845, and worked in the law office of Charles W. Sandford. In 1846, he moved to New Orleans where he apprenticed at the law firm of Thomas & John Slidell.

During this period, using the nom de plume of Hans Yorkel, he served as the New York correspondent of the New Orleans Commercial Bulletin. He returned to New York, where he practiced law and was admitted to the bar in 1851. In that year, Hall authored a book, The Manhattaner in New Orleans, or, Phases of "Crescent City" Life, in which he addressed the problems and challenges of large, ethnically diverse port cities and provided important historical sketches of a young New Orleans. In 1857, he authored a formerly popular Christmas poem and song, "Old Whitey's Christmas Trot".

In 1851, New York County District Attorney N. Bowditch Blunt appointed Hall as an assistant district attorney, and after Blunt's death in 1854, Hall offered to occupy the office until the end of the year and revert the district attorney's wages to Blunt's widow and her eight children. However, Democrat Lorenzo B. Shepard was appointed by Governor Horatio Seymour to fill the vacancy. In November 1854, Hall was elected on the Whig ticket to succeed Shepard, and served his first term as New York County District Attorney from 1855 to 1857. He was not re-elected partly due to his unpopularity following the Burdell-Cunningham murder trial. As a Republican, Hall was elected again as the New York County District Attorney in November 1861, and re-elected as a Democratic Tammany Hall candidate in 1864 and 1867. In November 1868, during his fourth term as D.A., Hall was elected Mayor of New York City as a Democrat supported by Tammany Hall. He was re-elected mayor in 1870, again on the Tammany ticket, serving two terms from January 1, 1869, to December 31, 1872.

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