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Civil defense programs

Elections in the United States: 1940

Jews in the United States

Radio in the United States

Roosevelt, Franklin D.

United Nations

The 1940s in America

La Guardia, Fiorello H.

by John David Rausch Jr.

Identification Mayor of New York City, 1934-1945

La Guardia, the first Italian and first Jewish mayor of New York City, had boundless energy in his career in public service. A national figure as mayor, he worked to enact reforms in New York City government.

Fiorello Henry La Guardia, a Republican, was elected mayor of New York City in 1933 with the assistance of influential members of the “brain trust” of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. His platform included various proposals to end corruption in city government and to establish a more rational, nonpartisan administration of the city. He attacked the challenges facing New York City with his characteristic energy. He was an active mayor at a time when the city needed active leadership. His overriding goal was to help the residents of his city. La Guardia was a “hands-on” manager: Residents were not surprised to see the mayor responding to a fire call with the fire department, and the mayor also found an obscure provision in the city charter that allowed him to serve as a municipal court judge.

In 1940, La Guardia considered running for president of the United States. President Roosevelt decided to seek a third term, and La Guardia did not want to run against an ally. He requested an appointed office in the Roosevelt administration, but the president’s aides believed that La Guardia lacked the temperament to serve in the cabinet. Roosevelt eventually appointed La Guardia as director of the new Office of Civilian Defense (OCD) in May, 1941. The OCD was responsible for preparing for the protection of the civilian population in case of an attack, maintaining public morale, promoting volunteer service, and coordinating federal departments to meet the needs of a potential war effort.

La Guardia used the radio extensively to publicize his work as mayor. During a newspaper strike in 1945, he read the comics on WNYC radio to an appreciative citywide audience.

With the mayor focusing on national offices during his third term, his administration began to deteriorate. Petty corruption seeped into his administration, and La Guardia was criticized by civil libertarians for his apparent heavy-handed tactics in rooting out racketeers operating in the city. He realized that his political career was ending, so he did not seek reelection in 1945. He was appointed director general of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration. He resigned from the position after the United States withdrew its support of the agency at the end of 1946. La Guardia died in September, 1947, in New York City.

Impact

Unlike his immediate predecessors, La Guardia did not become wealthy by serving as mayor of New York City. In fact, when he died, his second wife inherited a relatively meager estate of eight thousand dollars and a house. La Guardia’s ambition was to improve New Yorkers’ lives and to build the city’s infrastructure. As mayor, he worked to have a commercial airport built inside the city limits. This airport, in the Queens borough on Long Island, was later named LaGuardia Airport in his honor.

Further Reading

1 

Brodsky, Alyn. The Great Mayor: Fiorello La Guardia and the Making of the City of New York. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2003.

2 

Jeffers, H. Paul. The Napoleon of New York: Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002.

3 

Kessner, Thomas. Fiorello H. La Guardia and the Making of Modern New York. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1989.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
Rausch, John David. "La Guardia, Fiorello H.." The 1940s in America, edited by Thomas Tandy Lewis, Salem Press, 2010. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=1940_135340701353.
APA 7th
Rausch, J. D. (2010). La Guardia, Fiorello H.. In T. T. Lewis (Ed.), The 1940s in America. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.
CMOS 17th
Rausch, John David. "La Guardia, Fiorello H.." Edited by Thomas Tandy Lewis. The 1940s in America. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2010. Accessed December 14, 2025. online.salempress.com.