In 1717 he qualified as a Common Councilman, and a year later was commissioned Justice of the Peace for Philadelphia county.
In 1723, he was charged with leading the Free Society of Traders.
He was also sheriff, excise collector and judge of admiralty, before finally becoming mayor in 1726.
The third Charles Read, his son, was born in the London Coffee House (finished in 1702) in 1715.
[2][3][1][4] One of his final positions was Clerk of the Orphan's Court of Philadelphia county, where he was succeeded by his deputy, Thomas Hopkinson, upon his death in 1736.