William Vermilye Brady (July 24, 1811– March 31, 1870) was the 68th mayor of New York City, in office from 1847 to 1848.

Biography

William V. Brady was born in New York City on July 24, 1811. Before becoming active in politics, he was a

silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exactly synonyms as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are or were largely the same but the end product may vary grea ...

and

jeweler A bench jeweler is an artisan who uses a combination of skills to make and repair jewelry. Some of the more common skills that a bench jeweler might employ include antique restoration, silversmith, Goldsmith, stone setting, engraving, fabrica ...

. A

fiscally conservative Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., '' ...

Whig, Brady entered politics as an opponent of the

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 ...

Democratic organization. From 1842 to 1847 he served as Assistant Alderman and then

Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...

. In 1847 he was a successful candidate for Mayor, capitalizing on a rift in Tammany and the third party candidacy of an

anti-immigration Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, has become a significant political ideology in many countries. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory ...

nominee to score a narrow victory. He served until 1848. For his support of

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to th ...

's winning campaign for

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

in 1848, Brady was rewarded in 1849 with appointment as

Postmaster of New York City A post office may have operated in New York City as early as 1687. The United States Postal Service has no information on New York's postmasters prior to the year 1775. The New York City Post Office is first mentioned in Hugh Finlay's journal dat ...

. He served in this post until 1853. After Franklin Pierce became President in 1853, Brady was replaced as Postmaster and went into the insurance business as a founder of the Continental Insurance Company in 1853, serving until 1857 as its first president. He was also a member of the board of directors of the Mutual Life Insurance Company. He was also a founder of the Widows and Orphans Benefit Life Insurance Company, of which he was president. Brady died in New York City on March 31, 1870. He was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in The

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York City.

Legacy

Brady Avenue in the

was named after him.

Biography

Legacy

References

External links