Recalling pleasant things and taking the time to dwell on them.
Meet Iowa City’s Mayors – 1853 To Today – Volume VI.
This is the sixth and final page in a series of six – covering the long history (1853 to today) of the mayors of Iowa City. You might want to return to the introductory page to read all of the preliminary information before proceeding here with Volume VI…
At the time of this writing (2025), Iowa City – over our 172-year-history as an incorporated city – has had 65 different mayors serving 73 separate terms. Our three main resources for these webpages are 1) Irving Weber’s articles from March 1985 (above left), which at that time, covered 56 different mayors, 2) the listing of city mayors found in the records of the Iowa City Library (above right top), and 3) a list of mayors (1853-1882) taken from The History of Johnson County -1882 (above right bottom).
So here, for your reading enjoyment, are some updated facts and figures on each of our 65 illustrious city leaders – continuing on this final page six…
Iowa City Mayor #61 and #58 – Mary C. Neuhauser was selected twice to serve as mayor – from 1976-78 (read more here), and again from 1982-84, becoming the third woman to serve as mayor of Iowa City. An attorney, she also completed her J.D. at the University of Iowa Law School during these years, graduating in 1982. After serving on the City Council in Iowa City (1975-1983), Neuhauser was elected State Representative to the Iowa House (1987-1993), and to the Iowa State Senate (1995-1997). Iowa City Mayor #62, #64 – John McDonald (1944-2009)served for ten years on the Iowa City City Council and was mayor for six of those years. His first two-year term was from 1984 to 1986, and his second term (2 two-year terms) ran from 1988 to 1992.McDonald – who first ran for public office in 1981 (see above) – was born February 19, 1944 in Iowa City, was a graduate of Regina High School, and attended Los Angeles City College. John was well-known around Iowa City as the co-owner (with his brother, Don) of McDonald Optical Dispensary. The longtime Iowa City business was founded by their father, Alfred, and John joined the family business in 1969. Below: The January 4, 1984 edition of The Press-Citizen announces McDonald’s election as mayor.Iowa City Mayor #63– William (Bill) J. Ambrisco (1930-2017)was a member of the Iowa City City Council from 1984 to 1994, and served as mayor for one two-year term (1986-1988).Ambrisco was born in South Connellsville, Pennsylvania, and served in the Army in Korea during the Korean War. In 1955, Bill and his wife re-located to Iowa City, where he attended SUI, graduating in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the College of Business.Ambrisco made his career in insurance in Iowa City as President of the Welt-Ambrisco Insurance Co. in Iowa City. He served as a National Director of the Independent Insurance Agents of America, and in 1977, achieved the professional insurance designation, Charter Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU). He was a Director of the Iowa City Area Development Group (ICAD) and a Director and President of the Iowa City Chamber of Commerce.Iowa City Mayor #64 (and #62) – John McDonald (1944-2009) returned to the mayoral position in 1988, serving, this time, for 2 two-year terms (1988-1992). Without a doubt, McDonald was civic and community minded. He was a lifelong member of St. Patrick’s Church, served on the board of the Iowa Opticians Assn, and was a member of The Optical Retail Group. In his younger years, John was also actively involved with the Iowa City Jaycees, serving as president and on the board of directors. He passed away in July of 2009. Iowa City Mayor #65 – Darrell G. Courtney (1949-2018) was elected mayor in 1992, serving one two-year term (1992-1994).Courtney was born in Oskaloosa and went on to study business administration at the University of Iowa, graduating in 1972. He started his professional career with automotive and insurance sales, which led to a 40-year stint as a financial advisor working with companies like Dain Bosworth. At the time of his death (2018), he was serving as First Vice President and Branch Manager of the Wells Fargo Bank.Iowa City Mayor #66 – Susan Horowitz (1938-2003) served on the Iowa City City Council from 1988 to 1996, and was elected Iowa City mayor from 1994 to 1996.Iowa City’s fourth woman mayor, Horowitz was born in 1938 in Buffalo, New York, graduating from Brighton High School in Rochester, New York, and earning her B.S. from Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania in 1959. She worked as an administrative assistant in the U. S. Peace Corps in Quito, Ecuador after which she moved to Washington DC where she worked as program officer for the Appalachian Regional Commission. Moving to Iowa City from Arlington, Virginia, in 1982, Susan became active in many local causes and organizations, and this continued when she began sharing her time between Iowa City and Evanston, Illinois, in 2001 where her husband, Joel, was teaching at Northwestern University. Horowitz was a member of the Iowa City and Evanston, Illinois League of Women Voters; member of the Iowa City Planning and Zoning Commission and a representative to the Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission and served on the Johnson County Council of Governments. She was also a member of the National League of Cities serving on the Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Policy Committee. Iowa City Mayor #67 – Naomi S. Novick served on the Iowa City City Council from 1990 to 1998, and was mayor of Iowa City from 1996 to 1998. Novick – the fifth woman to serve as mayor – was born in Chicago in 1932, earning a BS from the University of Illinois in 1955, moving to Iowa City in 1970. She was involved in local and state organizations such as the League of Women Voters of Johnson County and the University of Iowa Art Museum, where she worked as a docent for several years. Following her husband Melvin Novick´s death in 1986, she helped establish the Melvin R. Novick Award in Education Measurement and Statistics and the University of Iowa.Iowa City Mayor #68 – Ernest (Ernie) W. Lehman (1941-2023) served as mayor of Iowa City for four consecutive two-year terms (1998-2006), making his tenure the longest in recent history. The last mayor to serve eight years was J.J. Carroll (1925-1933). Lehman was born July 16, 1941 in Iowa Falls, moving to Iowa City in 1961 and receiving his bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa.Lehman was co-owner of Enzlers in downtown Iowa City for thirty-six years, retiring in 2005, and was a past president of the Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, Old Capitol Kiwanis, and the Downtown Assn. He served on numerous boards; the Mercy Hospital Advisory Board, Oaknoll Retirement Residence, Salvation Army, Free Medical Clinic, and the National Luggage Dealers Assn.Iowa City Mayor #69 – Ross Wilburn – Iowa City’s first mayor of color (2006-2008) was elected to the Iowa City City Council in 2006 and served a record 12 years (2006-2018).Wilburn was born in 1964 in Galesburg, Illinois and raised in Ames. After graduating from high school, Wilburn joined the Iowa Army National Guard, and then earned a Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work from the University of Iowa.Below: The January 5, 2006 Press-Citizen announces the election of Iowa City’s “first black mayor”.From 1997 to 2000, Ross Wilburn was the graduate program director of the School of Social Work Quad Cities Center at the University of Iowa. From 2000 to 2007, he worked as the executive director of the Crisis Center of Johnson County. From 2008 to 2014, he served as the director of equity at the Iowa City Community School District. In 2018, Wilburn resigned from the Iowa City City Counsel to make an unsuccessful run at becoming Iowa’s Governor. He was, however, elected to the Iowa House of Representatives, and assumed office in January 2019. Wilburn has also served as chair of the Iowa Democratic Party from January 2021 until 2023.Iowa City Mayor #70 – Regenia Baileyserved two terms on the City Council and became Iowa City’s sixth woman mayor, serving from 2008-2010. During her time as mayor, Iowa City experienced the Flood of 2008 and began its recovery.In other work,Bailey spent two terms on the statewide Vision Iowa board and served as chair. During her tenure, the board reviewed over 150 funding applications requesting over $114 million in funding. Of these requests, the Vision Iowa board awarded just over $91 million in funding and supported over half a billion dollars in capital projects in 73 Iowa counties.Bailey teaches as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Iowa, and has an MBA from The University of Iowa.Iowa City Mayor #71 – Matt Hayek was elected to the City Council in 2008 and served as mayor for six years – 2010 to 2016. Hayek graduated from Iowa City High in 1988, and then spent the next thirteen years away from home. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1992, served a two-year stint as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Andes Mountains in Bolivia, and then graduated from Michigan Law School in 1997. After four more years, Hayek returned to Iowa City, taking a job at the law firm his grandfather, Will Hayek, founded in 1926. He worked as a partner with his father, John Hayek, at Hayek, Brown, Moreland and Smith until his father’s death in 2014.
Iowa City Mayor #72 – James (Jim) A. Throgmorton served on the City Council from late-1993 through 1995, and again from 2012 to 2020. During those last four years (2016-2020), he also was appointed mayor. In this role, he vigorously led efforts to foster a more inclusive, just, and sustainable city. Throgmorton received a B.A. in history from Notre Dame in 1966, a M.S. in community development from the University of Louisville in 1972, and a Ph.D. in urban and regional planning from UCLA in 1983. He taught urban and regional planning at the University of Iowa for 24 years until retiring as an emeritus professor in 2010.
Iowa City Mayor #73 – Bruce A. Teague – (2020-present) was elected to the City Council in 2018, and in 2020, was elected as Iowa City’s second mayor of color. At the time of this writing, he is in his sixth year as mayor. Teague – born in Chicago in 1976 – moved to Iowa City at age 17. He earned his associate degree from Kirkwood Community College, a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a certificate in aging studies from the University of Iowa. Teague is the CEO of Caring Hands and More, whose services include home care/companionship care, parent helper, pet care, professional cleaning, lawn care, supported community living, day rehabilitation, and crisis stabilization (CSB).
