Maurice J. Tobin
Maurice J. Tobin | |
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Department of Labor portrait by C.J. Fox | |
6th United States Secretary of Labor | |
In office August 13, 1948 β January 20, 1953 | |
President | Harry S. Truman |
Preceded by | Lewis B. Schwellenbach |
Succeeded by | Martin P. Durkin |
56th Governor of Massachusetts | |
In office January 3, 1945 β January 2, 1947 | |
Lieutenant | Robert F. Bradford |
Preceded by | Leverett Saltonstall |
Succeeded by | Robert F. Bradford |
47th Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts | |
In office 1938β1945 | |
Preceded by | Frederick Mansfield |
Succeeded by | John E. Kerrigan |
Personal details | |
Born | Maurice Joseph Tobin May 22, 1901 Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Died | July 19, 1953 52) Scituate, Massachusetts, United States | (aged
Resting place | Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline, Massachusetts, United States |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Helen Noonan Tobin (m. 1932 - 1953, his death) |
Children | Helen Louise Tobin Carol Ann Tobin Maurice Joseph Tobin, Jr. |
Residence | Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Alma mater | Boston College |
Cabinet | Harry S. Truman |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
Maurice Joseph Tobin (May 22, 1901 β July 19, 1953) was a Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts, the 56th Governor of the U.S. state of Massachusetts, and U.S. Secretary of Labor.[1][2][3]
Early life and career
Tobin was born in Mission Hill, Boston, Massachusetts on May 22, 1901. He was the son of James Tobin, a carpenter, and Margaret Daly. He was the eldest of four children. He graduated from Boston College and worked for Conway Leather and New England Telephone before entering politics as a protΓ©gΓ© of the legendary James Michael Curley. Tobin was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives at the age of 25 and served from 1927 to 1929.
On November 19, 1932, Tobin married the former Helen Noonan (1906-1987) in Brighton, Massachusetts, with whom he had three children. He served on the Boston School Committee from 1931 to 1937, before shocking the political establishment by defeating Curley in the 1937 race for Mayor of Boston.[1][2]
The Mayor and Governor of Massachusetts
He served as Mayor from 1938 to 1945, during which time he advocated the Fair Employment Practices Bill, which prohibited discrimination based on race, color, creed, and national origin in hiring or promotion practices. During his tenure as mayor, the Cocoanut Grove fire occurred in Boston. Prior to the fire, club owner Barney Welansky boasted that that club had not needed to adhere to fire codes because Tobin would not permit his club to be closed. Welansky was convicted of manslaughter, and Tobin himself only narrowly escaped indictment. Four years into Welansky's sentence, now-Governor Tobin pardoned him. In 1944, Mayor Tobin was elected Governor of Massachusetts, defeating the Republican candidate, Lieutenant Governor Horace T. Cahill. He served one term as Governor from 1945 to 1947. His administration was marked by efforts to increase the benefits of unemployment insurance and workers compensation. He is also credited with the creation of Massport. In 1946, he was defeated for re-election by his Republican opponent, Lieutenant Governor Robert F. Bradford.[1][2][4]
Secretary of Labor
Governor Tobin remained active in Democratic politics, however, and campaigned vigorously for President Truman in 1948. Upon the President Truman's election, Tobin was appointed as U.S. Secretary of Labor, a position he held until 1953.
Later months and death
Shortly after he left his position on the Truman cabinet in January 1953, Tobin died of a heart attack on July 19, 1953, at his home in Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of 52. He is buried in Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline, Massachusetts.[1][2][5]
Legacy
A men's dormitory facility on the Long Island Hospital campus on Long Island in Boston Harbor is dedicated to Tobin. The Tobin Building's cornerstone was laid on November 9, 1940.[6] In 1967, the Mystic River Bridge was renamed the Maurice J. Tobin Memorial Bridge. An elementary school is named after Tobin in the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, where he was born.[7] The Psychology Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is located in Tobin Hall.
References
- β 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Maurice J. Tobin, Truman Aide, Dies," New York Times, July 20, 1953.
- β 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Vincent A. Lapomarda, The Boston Mayor Who Became Truman's Secretary of Labor: Maurice J. Tobin and the Democratic Party, Peter Lang Publishing, 1995. ISBN 0-8204-2448-X
- β "Truman Pays Tribute," New York Times, July 20, 1953; "Eisenhower Lauds Tobin," New York Times, July 21, 1953; "3,000 Attend Rites for Maurice Tobin," New York Times, July 23, 1953.
- β John C. Esposito, Fire in the Grove: The Cocoanut Grove Tragedy And Its Aftermath, 1st ed., Da Capo Press, 2005. ISBN 0-306-81423-4
- β Associated Press (July 20, 1953). The Day http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PO8gAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xnIFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4685,3028173&dq=maurice+tobin+dies&hl=en
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missing title (help). Retrieved 2012-10-16. "Former Secretary of Labor Maurice Tobin, one-time Democratic governor of Massachusetts and twice mayor of Boston, died of a heart attack in the arms of ..." - β The date is written on a dedicatory plaque on the Tobin Building.
- β http://www.boston.k12.ma.us/schools/RC426.pdf
Further reading
- Vincent A. Lapomarda. Maurice Joseph Tobin: The Decline of Bossism in Boston. New England Quarterly, Vol. 43, No. 3 (Sep., 1970)
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Maurice J. Tobin. |
- U.S. Department of Labor Biography
- Official Commonwealth of Massachusetts Governor Biography
- A film clip "Longines Chronoscope with Maurice J. Tobin" is available for free download at the Internet Archive [more]
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by Frederick Mansfield |
Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts 1938β1945 |
Succeeded by John E. Kerrigan |
Preceded by Leverett Saltonstall |
Governor of Massachusetts January 3, 1945 β January 2, 1947 |
Succeeded by Robert F. Bradford |
Preceded by Lewis B. Schwellenbach |
U.S. Secretary of Labor Served under: Harry S. Truman August 13, 1948 β January 20, 1953 |
Succeeded by Martin P. Durkin |
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