Edgar J. Nathan (August 28, 1891 – April 30, 1965) was a

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...

and political figure who served as Manhattan Borough President from 1942 to 1946. He is to date the last Republican to serve as Manhattan Borough President.

Biography

Edgar Joshua Nathan Jr. was born in

on August 28, 1891. He graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

in 1913 and

Columbia University Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestig ...

in 1916 From 1916 to 1941 he practiced law in New York City at the firm of Cardozo and Nathan, which included several relatives, including his cousin

Benjamin N. Cardozo Benjamin Nathan Cardozo (May 24, 1870 – July 9, 1938) was an American lawyer and jurist who served on the New York Court of Appeals from 1914 to 1932 and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1932 until his dea ...

. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Nathan worked in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

as an attorney for the War Trade Board. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, in 1937 Nathan was elected as a Delegate to the

New York State Constitutional Convention The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constituti ...

, achieving success at the polls despite running in a Democratic district. In 1938 he was an unsuccessful candidate for 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 ...

. In 1942 Nathan won election as Manhattan Borough President, and he served until 1946. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Nathan was involved in the city's

civil defense Civil defense ( en, region=gb, civil defence) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from man-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, miti ...

effort and was a leader of bond drives, metal salvage events and other activities. After leaving office Nathan returned to the practice of law briefly as a partner in Gale, Bernays, Falk, Eisner & Nathan. In 1946

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 has ...

Thomas E. Dewey Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: although ...

appointed Nathan to the New York State Supreme Court. Nathan won election to a full fourteen-year term later that year, and was reelected in 1960. The State Judicial Conference certified Nathan for continued service after he reached the mandatory retirement age for judges of 70, and he remained on the bench until his death. Nathan died in New York City on April 30, 1965.

Family

Nathan was descended from Abraham de Lucena, one of the first 13 Jewish immigrants to the United States. In addition, his ancestors included

Rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Gershom Mendes Seixas Gershom Mendes Seixas (January 15, 1745 – July 2, 1816) was the first native-born Jewish religious leader in the United States. An American Patriot, he served as the hazzan of Congregation Shearith Israel, New York City's first Spanish and Portu ...

, who founded New York City's Shearith Israel congregation in 1654. Nathan was President of Shearith Israel from 1951 until his death. Another Nathan ancestor from his Seixas line, Benjamin M. Seixas, served as an officer of the New York Militia during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. As a result, Nathan was able to join the

Sons of the American Revolution The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR or NSSAR) is an American Congressional charter, congressionally chartered organization, founded in 1889 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Louisville, Kentucky. A non-prof ...

. In addition to being related to Benjamin Cardozo, Nathan was also a cousin of

Emma Lazarus Emma Lazarus (July 22, 1849 – November 19, 1887) was an American author of poetry, prose, and translations, as well as an activist for Jewish and Georgist causes. She is remembered for writing the sonnet "The New Colossus", which was inspired ...

.Morning Freiheit Association
Jewish Currents
Volume 30, 1976, page 9

References

External links

Edgar J. Nathan Jr. papers
at th
New-York Historical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nathan, Edgar J. 1891 births 1965 deaths Lawyers from New York City Jewish American people in New York (state) politics Williams College alumni Columbia Law School alumni New York (state) lawyers New York (state) Republicans Manhattan borough presidents New York (state) state court judges 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American Sephardic Jews American lawyers