Michael Francis Farley (March 1, 1863 – October 8, 1921) was an Irish-American businessman and politician who served one term as a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

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

from 1915 to 1917.

Early life and career

Farley was born in Birr, County of Offaly, Ireland on March 1, 1863. He immigrated to the United States in 1881, and lived in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Farley became the owner and operator of a tavern on West 22nd Street in New York City, and was later president of the Wine and Liquor Dealers Association of

New York County Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the smallest county by area in the U.S. state of New York. Located almost entire ...

and Manhattan's Central Association of Liquor Dealers.

Tenure in Congress

He was elected to the

64th United States Congress The 64th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1915, t ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, and served from March 4, 1915, to March 3, 1917.

Gore–McLemore resolution

In Congress Farley was a proponent of the 1916 Gore–McLemore resolution. This resolution followed the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

's announcement that it would sink armed enemy merchant ships without warning, and was intended to prevent the United States from being drawn into

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. As introduced, the Gore–McLemore resolution asked American citizens not to travel on the armed vessels of any belligerent, and asked for the Secretary of State to refuse to issue passports to Americans intending to travel on such ships. President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

opposed the resolution, arguing that travel restrictions were an infringement on the rights of individual Americans. The resolution was

tabled In parliamentary procedure, the verb to table has the opposite meaning in the United States from that of the rest of the world: *In the United States, to "table" usually means to postpone or suspend consideration of a pending motion. Generally, t ...

by both the House and

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Campaign vs. La Guardia

Farley was defeated for reelection in 1916 by Fiorello H. La Guardia.

Death and burial

On October 8, 1921, Farley died as the result of exposure to anthrax contracted from his shaving brush. Upon becoming ill he sought treatment at a hospital and received anti-anthrax serum, but the treatment was unsuccessful. His death publicized the fact that New York public health officials had been waging a campaign to prevent the importation of infected hides and animal hair products. These products, including shaving brushes and toothbrushes, caused 11 deaths in the New York area.Medical Record
Anthrax in New York
October 22, 1921, page 728 Farley was buried in Calvary Cemetery in

Queens, New York Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farley, Michael F. 1863 births 1921 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Queens) Politicians from Brooklyn Irish emigrants to the United States Drinking establishment owners Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Deaths from anthrax Infectious disease deaths in New York (state) People from Birr, County Offaly American drink industry businesspeople American people of World War I 20th-century New York (state) politicians 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives