William Partridge was elected as Lieutenant Governor and was described as "Partridge was a native of this town and vey popular. He was bred a shipwright, and was distinguished for his skill in naval architecture and other mechanic arts. He had been a contractor for purchasing masts and timber for the navy, and had been otherwise largely engaged in trade; which had procured him an acquaintance with many influential persons in England." Apparently his commission came as a complete surprise to the previous Lieutenant Governor, John Usher, who spent the next several years trying to get himself reappointed. This went on until 1703, when Partridge relinquished the fight, sighting an "urgency of his private business".10