- Robert F. Wagner, Jr.
Infobox Politician
name = Robert F. Wagner, Jr.
imagesize =
caption = Wagner greets theLittle Rock Nine (1958)
order =Mayor of New York City
term_start =January 1 ,1954
term_end =December 31 ,1965
predecessor =Vincent R. Impellitteri
successor =John V. Lindsay
birth_date =April 20 ,1910
birth_place =New York ,New York
death_date =February 12 ,1991
death_place =New York ,New York
constituency =
party = Democratic
spouse =Phyllis Fraser
profession =
religion =Roman Catholic
footnotes =Robert Ferdinand Wagner, Jr., usually known as Robert F. Wagner, Jr. (
April 20 1910 –February 12 1991 ) served three terms as the mayor ofNew York City , from 1954 through 1965.He was born in
Manhattan , the son of United States SenatorRobert F. Wagner . Wagner attendedTaft School andYale University , where he became a member ofScroll and Key . A residential building is named after him on theStony Brook University campus.Political career
Wagner served in the State Assembly (1937 – 1941) and as Borough President of Manhattan (1950 – 1953). He served as delegate to conventions and was nominated for the Senate and the Vice-Presidency. During
World War II , he served in the Army Air Corps.Mayor
His nomination and election as New York City mayor in 1953 caused a rift in the Democratic Party, and instigated a long-standing feud between
Eleanor Roosevelt andCarmine DeSapio , Boss ofTammany Hall .During Wagner's tenure as mayor of New York, he built public housing and schools, created the
City University of New York system, established the right of collective bargaining for city employees, and barred housing discrimination based on race, creed or color. He was the first mayor to hire significant numbers of people of color in city government. His administration also saw the development of theLincoln Center and brought Shakespeare to Central Park.In the fall of 1957 after the Dodgers and Giants left the city of New York he appointed a commission to see if they could bring back National League baseball to New York. The
New York Mets were born out of this committee.Wagner was mayor at the time of the controversial demolition of the original Penn Station, which began on October 28, 1963. In 1965, he signed the law that created the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission .Ambassador
After deciding not to run for a fourth term in 1965, Wagner served as ambassador to Spain from 1968 to 1969. In that year, he decided to run for a fourth term but was soundly beaten by
Mario Procaccino in the Democratic primary. He also made a brief run four years later, but withdrew before the primary took place. In 1978 he was appointed byJimmy Carter to be his representative to the Vatican, where the College of Cardinals had recently elected a newPope ,John Paul II .Personal life
Wagner, a
Roman Catholic was married toPhyllis Fraser , widow ofBennett Cerf , from 1975 until his death. Her five-floor townhouse at 132 East 62nd Street, designed by Denning & Fourcade, "was so magnetic that the statesman moved in." [cite news|author=Max Abelson|title=Wendy's Warren|url=http://www.observer.com/node/36711|publisher=The New York Observer |date=February 12 ,2007 |accessdate=2007-09-27]Death
He died in
Manhattan ofheart failure in 1991, aged 80. His funeral Mass was offered byWilliam Cardinal Baum atSt. Patrick's Cathedral . Subsequent burial atCalvary Cemetery inSunnyside, Queens . "Mr. Wagner was buried beside the graves of his father, United States Senator Robert F. Wagner, and mother, Margaret, and first wife, Susan Edwards Wagner, and not far from the grave of New York's Governor Al Smith." [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE4DA113AF934A25751C0A967958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all]The Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at
New York University is named in his honor, as is the Robert F. Wagner, Jr., Secondary School for Arts and Technology inLong Island City, Queens .Notes
References
* [http://www.nyc.gov/html/nyc100/html/classroom/hist_info/mayors.html#wagner Mayor Wagner's biography on the web site of New York City]
* [http://wiredforbooks.org/robertwagner/ 1973 audio interview with Robert F. Wagner, Jr.] byDon Swaim
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE4DA113AF934A25751C0A967958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all "New York Times" Obituary]External links
*findagrave|8941 Retrieved on
2008-01-27
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