Famous Leaders From New York

One of New York City's beloved mayors was Fiorello H. La Guardia. La Guardia was elected as mayor in 1933, becoming the first Italian-American mayor in New York history. Before becoming mayor of New York, he worked for an organization to help prevent cruelty to children. Mr. La Guardia was also an interpreter for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

As mayor of New York, Mr. La Guardia was determined to rid the city of crime. He coined the phrase “Let’s drive the bums out of town.” During his tenure as mayor he eventually would rid the city of mob gangster Lucky Luciano. Mayor La Guardia hired prosecutor Thomas E. Dewey. Through the efforts of the mayor and the prosecutor, the mob leader Lucky Luciano was sentenced to jail for more than 30 years. There is a statue honoring mayor La Guardia in Greenwich Village, New York.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) was born in Hyde Park, New York. Mr. Roosevelt served as governor of his home state of New York. He would later become the 32nd President of the United States. During his term in office, he probably is most remembered for his fiscal policies that helped lift America out of the Great Depression. He also was president during the attack on Pearl Harbor. President Roosevelt is also looked upon as the president to advance the welfare program that he termed the New Deal Program. Franklin Delano Roosevelt is the only president in history to serve several terms. He was first elected in 1932, then re-elected in 1936, 1940 and 1944.