John Thompson Hoffman
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| John Thompson Hoffman | |
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23rd Governor of New York
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| In office 1869 – 1872 |
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| Lieutenant | Allen C. Beach |
| Preceded by | Reuben E. Fenton |
| Succeeded by | John Adams Dix |
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| Born | January 10, 1828 Ossining, New York |
| Died | March 24, 1888 (aged 60) Germany |
| Political party | Democratic |
John Thompson Hoffman (10 January 1828 – 24 March 1888) was governor of New York (1869–1872). He was also a judge (elected 1860) and Mayor of New York (1866 - 1868). Connections to the Tweed Ring ruined his political career, in spite of the absence of evidence to show personal involvement in corrupt activities.
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[edit] Early life
He was born in Ossining in Westchester County, New York. His father, Adrian Kissam Hoffman, was a physician in Westchester County. His father's parents, Philip L. Hoffman and Helena Kissam, were "among the most valuable members of early society in New York, and the founders of many public charities and benevolent works," Harper's Weekly effused.[1]
He attended Union College starting in 1843 in the junior class, but had to leave for a time due to ill health, eventually graduating in 1846. He then studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1849 and set up shop in Manhattan.[1]
[edit] High hopes of reformers
When he was elected mayor in 1865, reformers had high hopes for him. A front-page article in Harper's Weekly intoned:[1]
It is many years since the city of New York has chosen for her Chief Magistrate a man of the position and reputation of John T. Hoffman. He is not only a gentleman of high social position, but a lawyer of distinction, a judge of eminent probity, a representative by descent of some of the oldest New York families, a citizen of unblemished reputation ...
[edit] Guilt by association
Hoffman would be the candidate for the governorship of New York in 1868, and would become governor in the election that year. But for Hoffman it would begin the quagmire of controversy that has tarnished (probably unfairly) his reputation ever since. Hoffman's election was aided by Tammany Hall under the leadership of it's head, William Tweed. Tweed was replacing Hoffman with a Tammany candidate A. Oakey Hall, and also assisting in the presidential campaign of Horatio Seymour. Seymour would lose the election for President to Ulysses Grant. but Hall and Hoffman were elected with large majorities. But later on the fact that Hoffman had aid from Tweed, and his voter majority was so large for that time, would be recalled as proof that the Governor was a member of the notorious Tweed Ring.
In actuality, while Tweed did frequently see Hoffman in Albany on various votes and projects, it was no more than any other major Democrat in New York State. But they worked harmoniously together, and Tweed aided Hoffman in getting re-elected in 1870. Shortly afterwards a new state Constitution was voted in and signed that granted more local autonomy to New York City than it had had over certain departments of the government. Such reform had been discussed for decades, but Tweed with Hoffman brought it to fruition. But just at this point Tweed's corruption began being revealled in The New York Times and Harper's Weekly, and the new Constitution was discredited as being planned for more municipal corruption. At this time Hoffman was also thinking seriously of a run for the Presidency in 1872, and Tweed was to be his manager. Tweed, in actuality, had little interest in national affairs (he had been a Congressman for a single term in the 1850s), and while he might have considered the possible corruption pickings greater he also was aware of the bad publicity such scandals had brought on the Grant Administration. Whoever ran for President in 1872 would face Grant (running for re-election). As it turned out, the Tweed scandals wrecked Hoffman's chances and the nomination eventually was split between those Democrats supporting Liberal Republican Horace Greeley and those supporting the "pure" Democrat, New York attorney Charles O'Conor. In any case, Grant won.
Hoffman, his reputation ruined by the connections with Tweed, did not seek further political offices.
[edit] Death
Hoffman died at Wiesbaden, Germany on 24 March 1888, aged 60. He was buried at Dale Cemetery in Ossining.
[edit] Legacy
- Hoffman Island is named for him.
- Hoffman was one of only two Mayors of New York City to become Governor of New York, the other was DeWitt Clinton.
- In the movie version of the musical Up in Central Park, the character of Hoffman appears, but the name is changed to "Governor Motley" and is played by actor Thurston Hall.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c [1]"John T. Hoffman, Mayor-Elect of New York City" article (without byline) on the front page of Harper's Weekly, December 23, 1865
[edit] Further reading
- Kenneth D. Ackerman, Boss Tweed: The Rise and Fall of the Corrupt Pol Who Conceived the Soul of Modern New York. New York: Carroll & Graf, Publishers, 2005, 2006. ISBN 0-7867-1686-X.
- Leo Hershkovitz, Tweed's New York: Another Look. Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1977. ISBN 0-385-07656-8.
- David Quigley, Second Founding: New York City, Reconstruction, and the Making of American Democracy. New York: Hill & Wang/ Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2004. ISBN 0-8090-8514-3. This meaty little book discusses the conflicts between the political parties in New York State regarding constitutional changes in the 1860s and 1870s. Hoffman is discussed on pages 9, 60-61, 63-65, 78, 87, and 94.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Charles Godfrey Gunther |
Mayor of New York 1866–1868 |
Succeeded by Thomas Coman |
| Preceded by Reuben E. Fenton |
Governor of New York 1869–1872 |
Succeeded by John A. Dix |
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