Erastus Corning (politician, 1909)

Erastus Corning (1969)

Erastus Corning 2nd (born October 7, 1909 in Albany , New York , † May 28, 1983 in Boston , Massachusetts ) was an American politician . He was a member of the Democratic Party and was the 72nd mayor of Albany from 1942 until his death in 1983.

Life

Erastus Corning 2nd was born in Albany as the son of businessman Edwin Corning and his wife Louise, née Maxwell. He is a great-grandson of politicians Erastus Corning and Amasa J. Parker and a nephew of entrepreneur Parker Corning . He was also with the lawyer , Amasa J. Parker Jr. related. Corning had a younger brother and two younger sisters. Erastus Corning attended Albany Academy and Groton School, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Yale University .

After finishing his studies, Corning worked for an insurance company and entered politics in 1936 when he became a member of the New York State Assembly . From 1937 to 1941, Corning represented the 30th district in the New York Senate . On August 1, 1941, Corning resigned from office to run for mayor of his hometown Albany. In November of the same year he was elected mayor against the Republican Benjamin R. Hoff, Corning took office on January 1, 1942.

After Corning was declared disabled prior to the start of World War II , that assessment was changed in 1944 and Corning joined the United States Army . During his military service, the mayor's office was temporarily taken over by City Councilor Frank Harris. During his military training, Corning was stationed as an infantryman at Fort Dix Military Base in New Jersey and later at Camp Blanding in Florida . He was assigned to the 38th Infantry Regiment and was deployed in France from October 1944, where his division was mainly responsible for helping to rebuild the liberated villages. In early 1945 he took part in the Battle of the Bulge . In the fall of 1945, Corning returned to Albany and resumed his office as mayor. His military awards included the Combat Infantryman Badge , the Bronze Star Medal , the World War II Victory Medal, and the Good Conduct Medal .

In 1946, Erastus Corning ran for the gubernatorial election in New York as Lieutenant Governor under James M. Mead , who was defeated by the incumbent Thomas E. Dewey . Corning was re-elected ten times as mayor, but he was usually the only candidate. In 1973 he was only just confirmed in office against Carl Touhey. In 1977 Corning won the party primary against Senator Howard C. Nolan Jr. His last re-election was in 1981 against Charles Touhey.

Erastus Corning was married to Elizabeth Norris Platt from 1932 until his death and had a son and a daughter with her. Corning, which is named after his great-grandfather, described himself as opposed to the usual additives II or Jr. as Erastus Corning 2nd . During his last two terms in office, Corning's health was bad, he died on May 28, 1983 at Boston Medical Center of multiple organ failure . His office was initially taken over temporarily by Thomas Michael Whalen III , who was later elected mayor. Corning is buried in the Albany Rural Cemetery .

Others

The Erastus Corning Tower in Albany, with a height of 180 meters the tallest skyscraper in New York State outside of New York City , was named after Corning in 1983. The Dutch Queen Wilhelmina awarded Corning the Order of Orange-Nassau for his work in rebuilding the city of Nijmegen after the Second World War .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ CORNING TO RUN IN ALBANY; State Senator Resigns to Seek the Mayoralty. New York Times , August 2, 1941, accessed July 13, 2019.
2. ↑ Paul Grohndahl: Mayor Erastus Corning: Albany Icon, Albany Enigma. SUNY Press, 2007, pp. 202-212 .
3. ↑ Frank Lynn: CORNING, ALBANY'S MAYOR FOR 40 YEARS, IS FACING A STIFF CHALLENGE. New York Times, November 1, 1981, accessed July 13, 2019.
4. ↑ MA Farber: ERASTUS CORNING 2D, ALBANY MAYOR SINCE '42, DIES. New York Times, May 29, 1983, accessed July 13, 2019.
5. ↑ Paul Grohndahl: Dutch make royal return. Timesunion, September 4, 2009, accessed July 13, 2019.