A magistrate of a borough; generally, the chief officer of the corporation, who performs, within the borough, the same kind of duties which a mayor does in a city. In England, the word is sometimes applied to all the inhabitants of a borough, who are called burgesses sometimes it signifies the representatives of a borough in parliament.
Law Dictionary – Alternative Legal Definition
In English, law. An inhabitant or freeman of a borough or town; a person duly and legally admitted a member of a municipal corporation. Spelman; 3 Steph. Comm. 188, 189. A magistrate of a borough. Blount. An elector or voter; a person legally qualified to vote at elections. The word in this sense is particularly defined by the statute 5 & 6 Wm. IV. c. 76,