Unlike Rove, however, Farley was instrumental in the creation of an overwhelming new majority in American politics, as the emergence of the New Deal transformed the political landscape of its time. Democrat is timely and indispensable not just because Farley was a fascinating and unduly neglected figure, but also because an understanding of his career advances our knowledge of how and why he revolutionized the Democratic Party and American politics in the age of the New Deal.
Read full review. Account Options Sign in. My library Help Advanced Book Search. Get print book. University of Michigan Press Amazon. It was used as a boost to the morale and energy levels of the fighting men. Shipped with food and ammunition as a "war priority item," the deal spread Coke's market worldwide at government expense. Also at US expense, after the war, 59 new Coke plants were installed to help rebuild Europe. His father, James Farley, was involved in the brick-making industry, first as a laborer and later as a part-owner of three small schooners engaged in the brick-carrying trade.
His mother was the former Ellen Goldrick. After his father died suddenly, Farley helped his mother tend a bar and grocery store that she purchased to support the family. After graduating from high school, he attended Packard Business College in New York City to study bookkeeping and other business skills. After his graduation, he was employed by the United States Gypsum Corporation. In , Farley officially began his service as a politician, when he was elected town clerk of Stony Point, New York.
Despite Stony Point's Republican leanings, Farley was reelected twice. Murphy by convincing him that Alfred E. Smith would be the best choice for governor. Farley married the former Elizabeth A. Finnegan on April 28, Farley managed to secured the upstate vote for Smith north of the Bronx line, when he ran for governor the same year. He was the last Democrat to hold the post, which was later taken over by the Port Authority of New York.
He sat in the th New York State Legislature in , but he lost it at the next election for having voted "wet," for the repeal of the Mullan—Gage Act, the state law to enforce Prohibition. In , Farley threatened to resign his post as Athletic Commissioner if boxing champion Jack Dempsey did not fight the mandatory challenger, African-American fighter Harry Wills. Farley banned Dempsey from fighting Gene Tunney and publicly threatened to revoke Tex Rickard 's Madison Square Garden license if he ignored the ruling of the commission.
Farley's public stand for black rights proved to be a valuable asset to the Democratic Party for generations, and it would sow the seeds of the black bloc of the New Deal. Wills was perhaps the most well known victim of the "color line" drawn by white heavyweight champions after the title reign of Jack Johnson.
Wills fought between and and was ranked as the number one challenger for the throne, but he was never given the opportunity to fight for the title. In , he was named to Ring Magazine in its list of the greatest punchers of all time. Meanwhile, Farley merged five small building supply companies to form General Builders Corporation, which would become the city's largest building supply company. Farley's firm was awarded federal contracts under the Republican Hoover administration to supply building materials to construct buildings now considered landmarks, such as the Annex of the James A.
General Builders supplied materials for the construction of the Empire State Building as well. Farley was an appointed official and resigned his post from General Builders when he joined Roosevelt's cabinet. Farley orchestrated Roosevelt's narrow victory in the gubernatorial election.
Farley was named secretary of the New York State Democratic Committee and orchestrated Roosevelt's reelection in He was named chairman of the New York State Democratic Committee, which he held until his resignation, in Farley helped bring to Roosevelt's camp the powerful newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst and helped Roosevelt win the presidential nomination and election. Farley's ability to gather the Catholics, unions, and big city machines, while maintaining the Solid South , into the New Deal Coalition greatly helped Roosevelt.
Farley would repeat the process in when he correctly predicted the states Roosevelt would carry and the only two states he would lose: " As Maine goes, so goes Vermont. In accordance with political tradition, Roosevelt appointed Farley Postmaster General , a post traditionally given to the campaign manager or an influential supporter, and Roosevelt also took the unusual step of naming him chairman of the Democratic National Committee in addition to the cabinet post in Farley was constantly criticized by Roosevelt's opposition for insisting on keeping both posts simultaneously.
Farley worked hard to keep the Post Office going through the Depression. His expert stewardship made the once-unprofitable Post Office Department begin to turn a profit. Farley was instrumental in revolutionizing transcontinental airmail service and reorganized the Post Office's airmail carriers. Farley worked in concert with the Pan American World Airways ' Pan Am president, Juan Trippe , to see that the mail was delivered safely and cost-effectively. That was after a brief period of the Army carrying the mail , with servicemen killed flying in bad weather.
Farley oversaw and was responsible for the flight of the first China Clipper. Farley is remembered among stamp collectors for two things. One is a series of souvenir sheets that were issued at commemorative events and bore his name as the authorizer. The other is the 20 stamps, known as "Farley's Follies," which were preprints, mostly imperforated and ungummed, of stamps of the period: Farley bought them at face value, out of his own pocket, and gave them to Roosevelt and Interior Secretary Harold Ickes , both collectors, and to members of his family and special friends of the Administration.
Farley himself did not collect stamps. Unfortunately, some of them reached the market, offered at the high prices commanded by rarities. When ordinary stamp collectors learned of that, they lodged strenuous protests, newspaper editorials leveled charges of corruption and a heated Congressional investigation ensued. Finally, in many more stamps of the unfinished stamps were produced and made generally available to collectors at their face value.
Today, the souvenir sheets and the single cutout reprints are not scarce. The original sheets were autographed to distinguish them from the reprints, and 15 were displayed in an exhibit at the Smithsonian 's National Postal Museum in June Farley controlled federal patronage in the new administration and was very influential within Roosevelt's Brain Trust and the Democratic Party throughout the United States.
Farley used his control of the patronage to see that Roosevelt's first days of New Deal legislation was passed.
Farley masterfully used the patronage machine to line up support for the New Deal's liberal programs. He helped to bring about the end to Prohibition and the defeat of the Ludlow Amendment. The latter was an attempt by opponents of the war to limit the foreign affairs powers of the president by requiring a referendum for a declaration of war unless there was an attack.
By swaying the votes of the Irish Catholic legislators in the Congress, Farley was able to bring about a defeat to the amendment, which if passed, would have prevented the President from sending military aid to Britain. Many Irish legislators had refused to lend aid to the British because of the potato famine. Farley's close relationship with Roosevelt deteriorated as drew closer. Farley began seeking support for a presidential bid of his own after Roosevelt refused to publicly seek a third term but indicated that he could not decline the nomination if his supporters drafted him at the convention.
As chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Farley had no legitimate candidate. Roosevelt would publicly support Cordell Hull after privately telling Farley and others that they could seek the nomination. In all other instances, however, he was continuously loyal and supportive of Roosevelt's policies. His disposition is such that he can accept responsibilities and not let them wear him down. He would not have been human had he not been happy over the fact that he was 9n his way to take the helm of the nation, particularly since he was confident he would find means of dealing with the crisis.
I dropped into a chair beside him. I attended the church during my days as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in Wilson's time, "You know, I think a thought to God is the right way to start off my administration, A proper attitude toward religion, and belief in God, will in the end be the salvation of all peoples.
For ourselves it will be the means of bringing us out of the depths of despair into which so many have apparently fallen. Flynn and Walker also had suites near by. I talked many times with Roosevelt during the hours pre- ceding his inauguration. The press of business was terrific.
Everyone wanted to see the incoming President. By contrast, the White House, where President Hoover was spending his final hours, was practically deserted. I pondered the contrast during a walk around the Executive Mansion the night before March 4, The next morning Mrs. Farley accompanied me to the special church services conducted by Dr.
Endicott Peabody, head master of Roose- velt's school, Groton. From the church the President drove to the White House. President Hoover came out, shook hands, and took a seat for the ride to the Capitol. Chief Justice Hughes, whose striking appearance made him the very personification of Justice, administered the oath of office, which the new President repeated after him in a firm voice.
The First Inaugural Address, possibly his greatest speech, was magnificently delivered. After the inaugural parade down Pennsylvania Avenue past the White House, members of the new Cabinet and White House secre- tariat were instructed to gather in the Oval Room with their fam- ilies. This marked the first time I crossed the threshold of the nation's most famous dwelling.
I had also a share of defeats, suffered many disappointments, nursed a few heartaches, but escaped being marked by bitterness or hate. There was a whispering campaign that Roosevelt was not a man of his word because he had gone back on a pledge to the Cathedral of St. Batie, Sandra S. Robert W. I am sure Roosevelt had this in mind when he wrote on stationery of the Executive Chamber at Albany from Warm Springs. Vierteljahrshefte fur Zeitgeschichte 46, no. September 25,
I was deeply stirred by thoughts of its famous occupants and of the historic events enacted therein. The President sat at a desk, smiling broadly. He called out the names of those to be sworn and each took the oath from Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo of the United States Supreme Court. Roosevelt then bade us welcome to the new administration and expressed the hope that we would work as a team for our common good and the best interests of the nation.
It is my intention to inaugurate precedents like this from time to time. No President so shattered tradition and no President set so many precedents. Roose- velt had an instinctive flair for the dramatic which was to serve him well. In the hundred days following his inauguration, beginning with his summoning Congress into special session and his proclamation clos- 38 Jim Farley's story ing all banks, the new President initiated a historic succession of relief and recovery measures.
I have always felt that Roosevelt's Banking Day Address will go down in history as one of the greatest utterances of an American Presi- dent, It has always been my belief that the hundred days 7 session of the Congress in the spring of passed more legislation which was beneficial to the American people than any other session of a like nature in the history of the Republic.
It is not my purpose to discuss the steps one by one because this is a personal story and I must, in all honesty, acknowledge that I had very little to do with his daring program. I was not in on its formation, although I was acquainted with measures as they developed; and my contribution was largely in helping to guide the program through Congress. From the outset he exhibited courage and daring, which was to characterize his administration. Perhaps the greatest manifestation of this side of his character was his assumption of personal respon- sibility for the spending of more than two billion dollars for the de- velopment of the atomic bomb in the war years.