James A. Roe Sr. (July 9, 1896 – April 22, 1967) was an American politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...

. He served as the leader the Queens County Democratic committee from 1938 to 1954 and a single term in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from 1945 to 1947.

Early life and career

Roe was born July 9, 1896 in Flushing,

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

. His father, James A. Roe, was a clerk of the court who was descended from an Irish family. Roe attended

Flushing High School Flushing High School is a four-year public high school in Flushing, in the New York City borough of Queens. The school is operated by the New York City Department of Education. As of the 2020-21 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1 ...

and later played semi-pro baseball. At the outset of World War I in 1917, he joined the Army and graduated from the Army's School of Military Aeronautics at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teac ...

and served in the

United States Army Signal Corps The United States Army Signal Corps (USASC) is a branch of the United States Army that creates and manages communications and information systems for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of Ma ...

. After the war he worked as a real estate and insurance broker, became involved in contracting and engineering business, and was on the board of directors of the Flushing National Bank. He developed tracts of land in Flushing and Murray Hill during his real estate career.

Political career

He became active in the Queens Democratic Party and supported

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

for President in 1932. In 1934, he lost a bid for the party leadership but continued to contest the chairmanship of James Sheridan. After four years of infighting, Roe upset Sheridan for the leadership in 1938. After the United States entered World War II, Roe volunteered for Army service and was commissioned as a major in the Corps of Engineers. In 1944, while still serving in the Army, Roe was elected to Congress from

New York's 5th congressional district The 5th congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives, represented by United States Democratic Party, Democrat Gregory Meeks. The district is located in Queens. A plurality of the ...

. He resigned his commission to take his seat his seat in Congress and was discharged as a lieutenant colonel. He courted controversy in 1948 when he led a movement to draft

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

to run for President while the general’s political affiliation was unknown. Roe believed that

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

would be defeated in the 1948 election and decided that the Queens delegation would not support anyone at the

1948 Democratic National Convention The 1948 Democratic National Convention was held at Philadelphia Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 12 to July 14, 1948, and resulted in the nominations of President Harry S. Truman for a full term and Senator Alben W. B ...

. The delegation voted for Roe on the first ballot. Despite his move and calls for him to resign, Roe was re-elected as party leader. Roe supported the successful candidacy of Vincent R. Impellitteri for mayor in 1950 but found himself at odds with

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

when Impellitteri ran for re-election in 1953. The Tammany-backed candidate,

Robert F. Wagner Jr. Robert Ferdinand Wagner II (April 20, 1910 – February 12, 1991) was an American politician who served three terms as the mayor of New York City from 1954 through 1965. When running for his third term, he broke with the Tammany Hall leadership ...

, refused Roe’s endorsement and worked to oust him from the party. His refusal to support W. Averell Harriman for

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ha ...

in 1954 led to his ouster. He continued to work behind the scenes as an insurgent and supported some successful candidates; but did not return to the party leadership. He was a delegate to the National Democratic conventions in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

Personal life

During the war he met Margaret Farrell, whom he married in 1920. They had four children. His son, James A. Roe Jr., served as a justice of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

. He was indicted for attempting to offer a $10 bribe to two police officers during a 1968 traffic stop, and was acquitted one day after he was killed in a plane crash. After leaving politics, he resumed his former business interests. Roe died in

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is n ...

on April 22, 1967 and was buried at Mount Saint Mary Cemetery in Flushing.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roe, James A. 1896 births 1967 deaths United States Army Air Forces soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army personnel of World War I Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 20th-century American politicians