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ABOUT FIORELLO H.
LAGUARDIA
 The son of immigrants of Italian and Jewish
ancestry, Fiorello LaGuardia, or "Little Flower," is widely
regarded as one of the best mayors in New
York City history, whose tenure redefined the
office. LaGuardia had a long distinguished career in public service,
beginning when he was 17 in the U.S. Consulate Service in Europe,
where he became fluent in Yiddish, German, French
and Italian. Upon graduating New
York University Law School
in 1910, LaGuardia practiced law and was appointed
Deputy Attorney General. LaGuardia was elected to Congress in 1916 on a
Republican ticket, interrupting his term to serve as
a decorated pilot on the Italian front in World War I (his plane was named
the Congressional Limited). He was elected President of the
Board of Alderman in 1919 and returned to Congress in 1923, winning
reelection repeatedly. After losing the mayoral election to Jimmy
Walker in 1929, he successfully ran for mayor again in 1933 on a fusion
ticket against Tammany Hall.
LaGuardia shunned the traditional
inauguration day ceremony, instead making numerous appearances, at each one
vowing to "clean house and clean it thoroughly." On his first day
in office, he delivered a radio address to the nation, declaring:
"New York City
was restored to the people this morning at one minute after midnight. It is
my duty from now on to guard and protect and guide the complete, peaceful and undisturbed enjoyment of that
possession."
For the next twelve years, the 5 foot 2,
sometimes-belligerent chief executive dominated life in New York City. He fulfilled many of his
pledges, ferreting out corruption in city government and bringing in talented
professionals. LaGuardia earned a reputation for placing the city's interests
ahead of political considerations. Although technically a Republican, he
worked closely with the New Deal administration of President Franklin
Roosevelt to secure funding for large public works projects. The federal
subsidies enabled New York City
to create a transportation network the envy of the world, and to build parks,
low-income housing, bridges, schools, and hospitals. He achieved the
unification of the city's rapid transit system, a goal that had long eluded
his predecessors, and reformed the structure of city government by pushing
for a new City
Charter. He presided over construction of New York City's
first municipal airport on Flushing Bay, later appropriately named LaGuardia Airport.
LaGuardia's psychological effect on New York City was
equally profound, restoring faith in city government by demanding excellence
from civil servants. He was perceived as ubiquitous, always first to appear
at a fire or natural disaster; he sometimes dropped in at city agencies
unannounced, periodically conducted the municipal orchestra, spoke weekly
over the radio, and once used that medium to read the comics to New Yorkers
during a citywide newspaper strike.
In 1945, the first three-term New York City mayor
decided not to seek a fourth term, perhaps hoping to enter national politics.
After leaving office, he hosted a weekly radio show and was
appointed Director General of the United Nations Relief and
Rehabilitation Commission. LaGuardia succumbed to pancreatic cancer on
September 21, 1947 at his home in Riverdale, Bronx.
From the NYC
100 Site
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