William Fellowes Morgan, Jr.

William Fellowes Morgan, Jr. was the President of the Middle Atlantic Oyster Fisheries in 1925, and was the Commissioner of Public Markets for New York City around 1934 through 1942, for at least eight years. He oversaw the opening of The Bronx Terminal Market in 1935. His father was William Fellowes Morgan, Sr. (1861-1943) a refrigerated storage business tycoon. He had a sister: Pauline Morgan Dodge.

Lawsuits

*1934 June 1, 1934; Matter of Cassidy v. Morgan
*1940 May 27, 1940; Russo v. Morgan
*1940 May 31, 1940; Matter of Joyce v. Morgan

References

*Bridgeport Telegram; Bridgeport, Connecticut; Saturday, February 14, 1925. The Oyster Men are Wise. The excessive prevalence of typhoid fever said to be caused by infected oysters taken from polluted waters, is over. The Public Health Service issues a report from Washington laying the blame for the "epidemic" to bivalves taken from beds near West Sayville, New York. Coincident with the publication of this report the oyster growers and dealers announce the organization of a vigilance committee to prevent if possible another winter of oyster-bred typhoid with resultant losses which, the oyster men state, have set them back during the recent scare. This is the kind of news that makes good reading and inspires the public with confidence in the intelligence of big business. The first reaction of the oyster boycott on the oyster men was one of natural resentment and denials. Far better the statement issued by Mr. William Fellowes Morgan, Jr., President of the Middle Atlantic Oyster Fisheries, saying, "We have no criticism to make of that action (Health Department restrictions on the sale of oysters) We don't want to make five cents at the expense of public health. While the oyster growers and retailers will not admit that their product was responsible for the typhoid outbreak, they are formulating a code of ethics. This code will stop production of oysters in areas where water pollution is likely patrol boats which will be floating bacteriological laboratories will be put in service, while dealers are to be educated in the proper method of handling oysters. Oysters offer a highly nutritious form of food, especially rich in iodides that keep the important thyroid gland. Their production should be unhindered by public scares and in this, the cities that empty sewage into coastal waters are more to blame than the oyster men. Perhaps their vigilance committee tc be organized with "real power and responsibility" will look into this situation.
*New York Times; November 30, 1937, Tuesday; Two Salaries Upheld For W. F. Morgan Jr.; Court Sees No Impropriety In Official's Private Position--Stockholder's Suit Ends. Supreme Court Justice Bernard L. Shientag declared yesterday that there was no impropriety or inconsistency involved in the retention by William Fellowes; Morgan Jr. of his position as president of the Brooklyn Bridge Freezing and Cold Storage Company while serving as Commissioner of Public Markets, Weights and Measures.
*Time; January 12, 1942 One of those appointees, social registerite William Fellowes Morgan, Jr., an original member of the Little Flower's "cabinet" (and the best dressed), had been an able commissioner of markets for eight years. Recently the Mayor began picking Mr. Morgan's aides without consulting him. Once when Mr. Morgan objected that he did not even know the appointees, the Little Flower retorted: "Try reading the telephone book instead of the Social Register, you might get to know more people." He also began screeching about some of Mr. Morgan's appointments. He had not time to see Mr. Morgan, straighten things out. Mr. Morgan's slowly heating choler reached boiling point. It boiled over when the Little Flower said that one of Mr. Morgan's unpaid assistants, Mrs. Preston Davie, must go. Eugenie Mary Ladenburg Davie, rich, beauteous, energetic, is no ordinary woman. A onetime leader of the Landon Volunteers, active in the G.O.P., she is vice president of the American Women's Voluntary Services, Inc. Enlisting in Mr. Morgan's department as head of a wartime food-conservation program, big May Davie soon made feathers fly.