William Frederick Havemeyer

William Frederick Havemeyer (born February 12, 1804 in New York City , † November 30, 1874 there ) was an American politician . Between 1845 and 1874 he was mayor of New York City three times.

Career

William Havemeyer was the son of a German immigrant who ran a sugar refinery in New York City. He attended until 1823 to Columbia University is part of Columbia College and then the Wykoff Village Academy . He then worked in his father's sugar refinery. He later partnered with a cousin for this company. In 1842 he sold his stake in the company to his brother. Then he went into the banking industry. In 1851 he became President of the Bank of North America . He held this post until 1861. From 1857 to 1861 he was also President of the New York Savings Bank . He was also a shareholder in various other companies such as the Pennsylvania Coal Company and Long Island Railroad Co.

Politically, Havemeyer joined the Democratic Party . He was a supporter of Andrew Jackson who founded the party in 1828. He had a kind of pen pals with President Martin Van Buren . In the presidential election of 1844 he was one of James K. Polk's electors . Havemeyer was also a member of the Tammany Hall Society . In 1845, he was elected Mayor of New York City against incumbent James Harper . He initially held this office for a term between 1845 and 1846. The metropolitan area of New York extended until 1898 essentially to what is now Manhattan . During his early days as New York City Mayor, the city police force was reorganized. He also founded the Board of Emigration Commissioners , a committee that looked after the rights of immigrants. Havemeyer was the first president of the commission. These and other reform measures irritated Tammany Hall political leaders. Therefore, in 1846 they installed Andrew H. Mickle in place of Havemeyer , who was then elected as the new mayor.

William Havemeyer was again Mayor of New York City between 1848 and 1849. This time he was offered another candidacy, which he turned down because he only wanted to serve a one-year term. In 1859 he ran unsuccessfully as a candidate for Tammany Hall for his old office as mayor. During the civil war he was loyal to the Union and supported the abolition of slavery . After the political scandal surrounding William Tweed , the "boss" of Tammany Hall, Havemeyer became deputy head of a reform committee of this society. In 1872 he was offered the nomination for the office of New York Mayor by the Republican Party , which he initially rejected, but then accepted. In 1873, as a Republican, he was elected mayor of New York City for the last time. He held this office until his death on November 30, 1874. In doing so, most of his endeavors were met with fierce opposition both inside and outside the city council, led by Tammany Hall. He died of a heart attack in his office. He had ten children with his wife, Sarah Agnes Craig, daughter of Congressman Hector Craig .

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predecessor	Office	successor
James Harper	Mayor of New York City 1845–1846	Andrew H. Mickle
William V. Brady	Mayor of New York City 1848–1849	Caleb Smith Woodhull
A. Oakey Hall	Mayor of New York City 1873–1874	Samuel BH Vance

personal data
SURNAME	Havemeyer, William Frederick
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	February 12, 1804
PLACE OF BIRTH	New York City
DATE OF DEATH	November 30, 1874
Place of death	New York City