Paper 1
Elisabetta Cesare
June 7, 2014
Core Paper #1
Fiorello LaGuardia
“New York had never experienced a mayor like him before. All his successors in city hall have been measured against him. None has ever equaled him in accomplishments and esteem.” This quote describes Fiorello LaGuardia. He is known as a mayor that had great accomplishments in turning New York City into a great and powerful city after the Great Depression. LaGuardia was well liked for his humor, honesty, and passions for the city of New York. His accomplishments not only reflected him as a mayor, but also reflected New York as a city as well (Jeffers).
Fiorello was born on December 11, 1882 to Achille Luigi Carlo LaGuardia and Irene Coen. Fiorello’s parents, Achille and Irene, immigrated to the United States from Trieste, Italy to settle in Greenwich Village. From the very beginning Fiorello was full of energy. His first teacher recalled him as “impetuous and full of fight, and his vocabulary was well stocked with words of profanity.” His bold personality always stood out to those around him. At the age of fourteen, Fiorello had decided to fulfill his dream of “going to work against corrupt government.” The exposure that Fiorello had to unjust rules or laws, or the exposure to exploited workers that were unprotected increased his concern for laborers rights and gave him the push to want to become a government leader in some way (Brodsky).
Fiorello always said that he wanted to not only be someone but to be someone that does something worth while. Fiorello was of the Republican Party and went on to become a United States congressman, a commander for the United States air forces during World War 1, a member of the United States consular service, and finally went on to become mayor of New York City. LaGuardia served three terms as the mayor of New York City (Brodsky).
Fiorello was sworn in as the mayor of New York City in 1934. LaGuardia became known as “The Little Flower” because that is what Fiorello means in Italian. He supported women’s suffrage, child labor regulations, and was an activist for President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. He became an energetic, effective, and dedicated mayor that transformed the five independent boroughs into a unified city. He also enhanced social services, was responsible for rebuilding parks and building houses for the public, enhanced the mass transit of the city, and got rid of corrupt city departments. He took the city out of the Great Depression and brought it back to life (Brodsky).
President Roosevelt, along with Fiorello LaGuardia, was committed to bring not only New York but the whole nation back from the depression. The two worked closely together and LaGuardia directly communicated with FDR. President Roosevelt felt that LaGuardia was his direct link to the cities of the United States and relied on him greatly. The city of New York was being taken over by the New Deal that FDR put into place. The led to creating a new, better, and thriving New York. This happened by building parks, bridges, and schools. He also constructed LaGuardia international airport. LaGuardia, with the help of FDR and the New Deal, put the unemployed to work and increased the faith in the government and the strength in the vision of the government as well (Williams).
When LaGuardia was mayor he received the honor of being known as an honest mayor that was dedicated to the overall improvement of the city. Fiorello LaGuardia fought against corruption in politics, corrupt politicians, and also fought against the city’s large amount of organized crime among gang members and members of the mob. By fighting against organized crime he also then improved both the police department and the fire department. By having better police and fire departments the crime rates went down and the city began to see a great improvement. LaGuardia increased the welfare programs available to the citizens of the city and was one of the first to begin clearing out slums and offering housing facilities to those who needed it at a low cost. “LaGuardia revitalized New York City and restored public faith in City Hall.” (Williams).
“One of these rare creatures, a legend in his own time, LaGuardia set the pace by which not only New York City but all other cities dealt with such overwhelming Depression-engendered crises in welfare and relief, housing, education, recreation and the arts.” LaGuardia, although a great mayor, was hard on his workers and made sure things were done his own way and what he believed to be the correct way. He came across as a dictator to some people, but this was his effective way of getting through tough times and tough issues that were coming about. Fiorello LaGuardia also wanted to make sure he was doing the best and making the best decisions for the city of New York ((Brodsky).
Fiorello LaGuardia is known as one of the best and most effective mayors that New York City has ever seen. He created employment by building parks, bridges and schools. LaGuardia worked along side with President Roosevelt to bring about change in the economy and to make New York City prosper once again. LaGuardia flushed out organized crime and strengthened the police and fire departments. He gained respect from the citizens of New York by up lifting them from depression, creating jobs, and restoring faith in the government and the economy. “No successor to date has come close to matching Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia’s record. It is doubtful, if not improbable, that any future successor will.” (Brodsky).
Works Cited
Brodsky, Alyn. The Great Mayor: Fiorello La Guardia and the Making of the City of New York. New York: St. Martin's, 2003. Print.
Jeffers, H. Paul. The Napoleon of New York: Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002. Print.
Williams, Mason B. City of Ambition: FDR, La Guardia, and the Making of Modern New York. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
June 7, 2014
Core Paper #1
Fiorello LaGuardia
“New York had never experienced a mayor like him before. All his successors in city hall have been measured against him. None has ever equaled him in accomplishments and esteem.” This quote describes Fiorello LaGuardia. He is known as a mayor that had great accomplishments in turning New York City into a great and powerful city after the Great Depression. LaGuardia was well liked for his humor, honesty, and passions for the city of New York. His accomplishments not only reflected him as a mayor, but also reflected New York as a city as well (Jeffers).
Fiorello was born on December 11, 1882 to Achille Luigi Carlo LaGuardia and Irene Coen. Fiorello’s parents, Achille and Irene, immigrated to the United States from Trieste, Italy to settle in Greenwich Village. From the very beginning Fiorello was full of energy. His first teacher recalled him as “impetuous and full of fight, and his vocabulary was well stocked with words of profanity.” His bold personality always stood out to those around him. At the age of fourteen, Fiorello had decided to fulfill his dream of “going to work against corrupt government.” The exposure that Fiorello had to unjust rules or laws, or the exposure to exploited workers that were unprotected increased his concern for laborers rights and gave him the push to want to become a government leader in some way (Brodsky).
Fiorello always said that he wanted to not only be someone but to be someone that does something worth while. Fiorello was of the Republican Party and went on to become a United States congressman, a commander for the United States air forces during World War 1, a member of the United States consular service, and finally went on to become mayor of New York City. LaGuardia served three terms as the mayor of New York City (Brodsky).
Fiorello was sworn in as the mayor of New York City in 1934. LaGuardia became known as “The Little Flower” because that is what Fiorello means in Italian. He supported women’s suffrage, child labor regulations, and was an activist for President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. He became an energetic, effective, and dedicated mayor that transformed the five independent boroughs into a unified city. He also enhanced social services, was responsible for rebuilding parks and building houses for the public, enhanced the mass transit of the city, and got rid of corrupt city departments. He took the city out of the Great Depression and brought it back to life (Brodsky).
President Roosevelt, along with Fiorello LaGuardia, was committed to bring not only New York but the whole nation back from the depression. The two worked closely together and LaGuardia directly communicated with FDR. President Roosevelt felt that LaGuardia was his direct link to the cities of the United States and relied on him greatly. The city of New York was being taken over by the New Deal that FDR put into place. The led to creating a new, better, and thriving New York. This happened by building parks, bridges, and schools. He also constructed LaGuardia international airport. LaGuardia, with the help of FDR and the New Deal, put the unemployed to work and increased the faith in the government and the strength in the vision of the government as well (Williams).
When LaGuardia was mayor he received the honor of being known as an honest mayor that was dedicated to the overall improvement of the city. Fiorello LaGuardia fought against corruption in politics, corrupt politicians, and also fought against the city’s large amount of organized crime among gang members and members of the mob. By fighting against organized crime he also then improved both the police department and the fire department. By having better police and fire departments the crime rates went down and the city began to see a great improvement. LaGuardia increased the welfare programs available to the citizens of the city and was one of the first to begin clearing out slums and offering housing facilities to those who needed it at a low cost. “LaGuardia revitalized New York City and restored public faith in City Hall.” (Williams).
“One of these rare creatures, a legend in his own time, LaGuardia set the pace by which not only New York City but all other cities dealt with such overwhelming Depression-engendered crises in welfare and relief, housing, education, recreation and the arts.” LaGuardia, although a great mayor, was hard on his workers and made sure things were done his own way and what he believed to be the correct way. He came across as a dictator to some people, but this was his effective way of getting through tough times and tough issues that were coming about. Fiorello LaGuardia also wanted to make sure he was doing the best and making the best decisions for the city of New York ((Brodsky).
Fiorello LaGuardia is known as one of the best and most effective mayors that New York City has ever seen. He created employment by building parks, bridges and schools. LaGuardia worked along side with President Roosevelt to bring about change in the economy and to make New York City prosper once again. LaGuardia flushed out organized crime and strengthened the police and fire departments. He gained respect from the citizens of New York by up lifting them from depression, creating jobs, and restoring faith in the government and the economy. “No successor to date has come close to matching Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia’s record. It is doubtful, if not improbable, that any future successor will.” (Brodsky).
Works Cited
Brodsky, Alyn. The Great Mayor: Fiorello La Guardia and the Making of the City of New York. New York: St. Martin's, 2003. Print.
Jeffers, H. Paul. The Napoleon of New York: Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002. Print.
Williams, Mason B. City of Ambition: FDR, La Guardia, and the Making of Modern New York. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.