William Lafayette Strong

William Lafayette Strong (born March 22, 1827 in Richland County , Ohio , † November 2, 1900 in New York City ) was an American politician . From 1895 to 1897 he was Mayor of New York City.

Career

William Strong grew up in Ohio trading haberdashery. From 1853 he worked in the same branch in New York City. In 1869 he became the head of his own company, William L. Strong & Co. Then he got into the banking industry and became president of two banks. He also became a director of the Erie Railroad railway company . Politically, he joined the Republican Party . In 1882 he ran unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives .

In 1894, Strong was elected mayor of New York City as a candidate for the short-lived Fusion Party , a tactical alliance between Republicans and those parts of the Democratic Party that opposed Tammany Hall society . He held this office between 1895 and 1897. The metropolitan area of New York extended until 1898 essentially to what is now Manhattan . After the merger with the Bronx , Brooklyn , Queens and Staten Island in 1898, the New York emerged within its current boundaries. Strong was the last mayor before unification. In this role he made some reforms. The education committee was reformed and smaller parks were created. He appointed Theodore Roosevelt to be the city's chief of police. In 1896 a school reform was carried out.

After the end of his time as mayor, he was no longer politically active. He died on November 2, 1900 in New York.

Web links

predecessor	Office	successor
Thomas Francis Gilroy	Mayor of New York City 1895–1897	Robert Anderson Van Wyck

personal data
SURNAME	Strong, William Lafayette
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	March 22, 1827
PLACE OF BIRTH	Richland County , Ohio
DATE OF DEATH	November 2, 1900
Place of death	New York City