Robert Anderson Van Wyck

Robert Anderson Van Wyck
91stMayor of New York City
In office January 1, 1898 – December 31, 1901
Preceded by	William L. Strong
Succeeded by	Seth Low
Personal details
Born	(1849-07-20)July 20, 1849 New York City,New York, U.S.
Died	November 14, 1918(1918-11-14)(aged 69) Paris,France
Resting place	Woodlawn Cemetery
Political party	Democratic
Education	Columbia University(BA)
Signature

Robert Anderson Van Wyck(/vænˈwaɪk/vanWYKE;July 20, 1849 – November 14, 1918) was the firstmayorofNew York Cityafter the consolidation ofthe five boroughsinto theCity of Greater New Yorkin 1898.

Early life and education

Robert Anderson Van Wyck was the son of William Van Wyck and Lydia Ann Maverick. He was one of seven children, including two brothersAugustusand Samuel Maverick, a Confederate Regimental Surgeon.He studied at the Wilson Academy inNorth Carolina,and later graduated fromColumbia University,where he wasvaledictorianof his class.His sister Lydia marriedRobert Hokeof North Carolina, aConfederategeneral during theAmerican Civil Warand businessman.

Career

Van Wyck began working in business, then studied law and became an attorney. He enjoyed a large practice for many years before entering politics.

His business life depended on his social connections as well. Van Wyck was a member of theHolland Society,of which he became president. He belonged to many of the social clubs of the city and was prominent inMasoniccircles, being a member of The Ancient Lodge, New York City.

Political career

For many years Van Wyck took an active interest inDemocratic Partymatters, attending many conventions, state and national. Later, Van Wyck was elected Judge of the City Court of New York. He advanced to chief justice.

Van Wyck resigned as justice to accept the Democratic Party nomination for Mayor of New York City. He was elected in 1897 by a very large majority. He served asmayor of New York Citybetween 1898 and 1901, as the first mayor to governNew York Cityafter itsfive boroughshad been consolidated into a single city.

As Mayor, he brought together the innumerable municipal corporations comprising the greater city. He directed construction of theInterborough Rapid Transit'sfirst subway in Manhattan.

Van Wyck is generally regarded as a colorless mayor, selected by the leaders ofTammany Hallas a man who would do little to interfere with their running of the city. Initially highly popular as a result of his reversal of the various reforms introduced by the preceding Fusion administration, Van Wyck's administration foundered on the so-called "Ice Trust" scandal of 1900. TheNew York Worldreported that the American Ice Company ofCharles W. Morseplanned to double the price of ice, from 30 to 60 cents per hundred pounds (from 66 cents to 1.32 dollars per 100 kilograms). In the era beforerefrigeration,this had potentially fatal effects, as the ice was the only preservative available to keep food, milk, and medicines fresh. The high price would have put ice beyond the reach of many of the city's poor—Tammany's main power base in the years of waves of immigration.

American Ice was forced to reverse its decision due to the public outcry. Van Wyck's political rivals forced an investigation into the issue. It revealed that American Ice had secured an effective monopoly over the supply of its product to the city—it was the only company with rights to land ice at New York piers—and would have dramatically increased its profits at the new price. In addition, Van Wyck, whose salary as mayor was only $15,000, owned and had apparently not paid for, $680,000 worth of American Ice stock.

The Ice Trust Scandal destroyed Van Wyck's political career and was generally reckoned to have cost Tammany the elections of 1901, which was won by the Fusion reformist slate led bySeth Low.Two years later,The New York Timescharacterized the Van Wyck administration as one mired in "black ooze and slime".GovernorTheodore Rooseveltinitiated an investigation, which determined that Van Wyck had not been personally implicated in the Ice Trust Scandal.

Later years

Van Wyck and his wife enjoyed traveling. In 1906, they moved toParis, France.He died there at the age of 69 on November 14, 1918. The funeral was held at American Holy Trinity Church. His body was returned to New York and he was buried atWoodlawn CemeteryinThe Bronx,New York City.

Legacy

• In 1898 theFDNYlaunched afireboatnamedRobert Van Wyck.
• MS 217 inQueensis the Robert A. Van Wyck Middle School
• TheJamaica–Van Wyck stationof theNew York City Subwayin Queens
• TheVan Wyck Expresswayruns in a north–south direction through Queens fromJohn F. Kennedy International Airportin the south to theWhitestone Expresswayin the north.

Further reading

• Anne Van Wyck,Descendants of Cornelius Barentse Van Wyck and Anna Polhemus,New York: Tobias A. Wright Printer and Publisher, 1912, pp. 207–208.
• Oliver Allen (1993).The Tiger: The Rise and Fall of Tammany Hall,New York: Addison Wesley.
• "Ex-Mayor Van Wyck Left $2,000,000".The New York Times.January 4, 1919. p. 4.RetrievedMay 10,2023– via Newspapers.com.

External links

• Robert Anderson Van WyckatFind a Grave