Albert Charles Houghton

Albert Charles Houghton (April 13, 1844 – August 11, 1914) was an American businessman and politician who served as the first mayor of North Adams, Massachusetts.

Biography Albert Charles Houghton was born April 13, 1844, in Stamford, Vermont, to James and Chloe Houghton. He was the youngest son in a family of nine children.

Businesses Houghton was engaged in various business dealings. Before he was 21, he founded the Houghton Chemical Works of Stamford with his brother J.R. Houghton. By 1868, he was doing work in real estate and operating the Parker Mill in North Adams, Massachusetts. Houghton and his family moved to North Adams permanently in 1870.

Politics In 1868, Houghton was a member of the state legislature in Vermont, representing his hometown of Searsburg. When North Adams was incorporated as a city in 1895, Houghton was nominated by "all parties" and elected its first mayor.