Ronald Blackwood was the first African American mayor of Mount Vernon, New York, a suburb of New York City. Blackwood was born on Jan 19, 1926, in St. Andrew Parish, Jamaica. In search of a better life, he immigrated to the United States at the age of 28 and settled in Mount Vernon, New York to attend nearby Iona College (today Iona University). He graduated from Iona with a Bachelor of Business degree with an emphasis in Management.
After graduation from college Blackwood was employed by the Honeywell Corporation in Pleasantville, New York, a short distance from Mount Vernon. Blackwood worked at Honeywell for thirty years. During his last ten years at Honeywell, he served as the company’s Contract Administrator.
In 1967 Blackwell entered politics and was elected to the Westchester Board of Supervisors. He served two years and then was elected to the Mount Vernon City Council. He served 15 years on the council. For four of those years, he was council president.
In 1976 Mount Vernon Mayor August Petrillo died while in office. Blackwood as Council President at the time, served four months as Acting Mayor. Nonetheless the local Democratic Party did not nominate him to run for the office in a special election. In 1979 he was again refused the nomination. However, in 1984 he was nominated unanimously and won the election to become Mount Vernon’s first African American mayor. He served 11 years as mayor and then retired rather than run for a fourth term.
During the years he served as mayor he focused on providing affordable housing for his constituents and on public safety. The police and fire departments were fully staffed and provided excellent service to the community. A large police and court facility was erected which was named after him in 1999. Housing units were constructed and a large retail complex built. Under his administration a city-wide Olympics was inaugurated along with an annual Holocaust Memorial commemoration and an annual Yuletide Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
After serving 11 years as mayor Blackwood and his wife, Ann, relocated to New Smyrna Beach, Florida where he became very active in community affairs. He was a member and leader in the local Rotary club and yacht club. He served as a board member of the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity and was a mentor for middle school students. Blackwood once remarked that his life’s motto was “Life is service. The one who progresses is the one who gives his fellow being a little more, a little better service.”
Blackwood was married to Ann Giffin for 38 years and the couple had one daughter, Helen. Ronald Alexander Blackwood died on February 22, 2017, from Parkinson’s disease at the age of 91 in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.
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“Former Mount Vernon Mayor Ronald Blackwood, First African-America Mayor Elected in NYS, Dies,” https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/ronald-blackwood-obit/; “In Loving Memory of Ronald A. Blackwood”, https://baldwincremation.com/obituaries/ronald-a-blackwood/; “Service set for former Mount Vernon major Ronald Blackwood”, https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/mount-vernon/2017/02/27/service-set-mount-vernon-mayor-ronald-blackwood/98473028/.
