John Francis Murtaugh (February 6, 1874 in Elmira,

Chemung County, New York Chemung County is a county in the southern tier of the U.S. state of New York. The population was 84,148 as of the 2020 census. Its county seat is Elmira. Its name is derived from a Delaware Indian village whose name meant "big horn". Chemun ...

– December 1, 1918 in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

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 ...

) was an American lawyer and 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 * '' ...

Life

He was the son of Michael Murtaugh. He graduated from Allegheny College in 1896; and from

Cornell Law School Cornell Law School is the law school of Cornell University, a private Ivy League university in Ithaca, New York. One of the five Ivy League law schools, it offers four law degree programs, JD, LLM, MSLS and JSD, along with several dual-deg ...

in 1899. At Cornell he was a member of the

Quill and Dagger Quill and Dagger is a senior honor society at Cornell University. It is often recognized as one of the most prominent societies of its type, along with Skull and Bones and Scroll and Key at Yale University. In 1929, ''The New York Times'' stated t ...

Society, a member of the football team, and captain of the baseball team. He married Nellie O'Day (d. 1915), and they had four children. He was a member of the Board of Supervisors of Chemung County for four terms; and Corporation Counsel of Elmira from 1904 to 1908. Murtaugh was a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

(41st D.) from 1911 to 1914, sitting in the 134th, 135th, 136th and

137th New York State Legislature The 137th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 7 to May 20, 1914, while Martin H. Glynn was Governor of New York, in Albany. Background Under the provisions o ...

s. In 1914, he was chosen

Majority Leader of the New York State Senate The Majority leader of the New York State Senate is elected by the majority of the members of the New York State Senate. The position usually coincides with the title of temporary president of the State Senate, who presides over the session of th ...

for the session of 1914 after President pro tempore of the State Senate

Robert F. Wagner Robert Ferdinand Wagner I (June 8, 1877May 4, 1953) was an American politician. He was a Democratic U.S. Senator from New York from 1927 to 1949. Born in Prussia, Wagner migrated with his family to the United States in 1885. After graduating ...

had become Acting Lieutenant Governor in October 1913 upon the impeachment of Governor

William Sulzer William Sulzer (March 18, 1863 – November 6, 1941) was an American lawyer and politician, nicknamed Plain Bill Sulzer. He was the 39th Governor of New York and a long-serving congressman from the same state. Sulzer was the first, and to date ...

. This was the only time before 2009 that the offices of Majority Leader and President pro tem of the State Senate were not held by the same person. Murtaugh was a member of the New York State Commission for the

Panama–Pacific International Exposition The Panama–Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California, United States, from February 20 to December 4, 1915. Its stated purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely se ...

in 1915. In 1918, he was commissioned a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. He died at

The Ansonia The Ansonia is a building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, located at 2109 Broadway, between 73rd and 74th Streets. It was originally built as a residential hotel by William Earle Dodge Stokes, the Phelps-Dodge copper heir ...

Hotel after taking poison by mistake. He was served "Roach salt"Chemical description of Roach salt = Sodium fluoride hydrofluoride
/ref> (NaHF₂, an

insecticide Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed to b ...

) instead of

Rochelle salt Potassium sodium tartrate tetrahydrate, also known as Rochelle salt, is a double salt of tartaric acid first prepared (in about 1675) by an apothecary, Pierre Seignette, of La Rochelle, France. Potassium sodium tartrate and monopotassium phosphat ...

purgative Laxatives, purgatives, or aperients are substances that loosen stools and increase bowel movements. They are used to treat and prevent constipation. Laxatives vary as to how they work and the side effects they may have. Certain stimulant, lubri ...

), and died about three hours after ingestion. He was buried in Elmira.

Notes

Sources

''The Journal of the American-Irish Historical Society''
(Vol. 21, 1922) (spells "roach saults") {{DEFAULTSORT:Murtaugh, John F 1874 births 1918 deaths Cornell Law School alumni New York (state) state senators United States Army officers Majority leaders of the New York State Senate Politicians from Elmira, New York Allegheny College alumni 19th-century American legislators United States Army personnel of World War I Deaths by poisoning Accidental deaths in New York (state) Cornell Big Red baseball players Cornell Big Red football players