Thomas Henry Selby


Thomas Henry Selby was the 13th Mayor of San Francisco serving from December 6, 1869, to December 3, 1871.
Thomas Henry Selby was born on May 14, 1820, in New York, NY. When he was 29 years old, Selby went to California for the California Gold Rush. He moved to San Francisco, California and became a merchant in the city. Selby built the Selby Shot Tower in San Francisco and founded the Selby Smelting Works. He was then elected mayor and served from December 6, 1869, to December 3, 1871. He died in San Francisco on June 17, 1875, of pneumonia. He is buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Oakland.
Selby's daughter, Jeanie, married Faxon Dean Atherton Jr., a son of Atherton namesake Faxon Dean Atherton.
His daughter Clair married Andrew Jackson Ralston, brother of William Chapman Ralston.
His son, Prentiss, married Nattie Cofin of the Nantucket Cofins.
His daughter, Cornelia, married Rear-Admiral Louis Kempff of Belleville, Ill.