James Hugh Joseph Tate (April 10, 1910 – May 27, 1983) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 92nd

Mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Jim Kenney. History The first mayor of Philadelphia, ...

from 1962 to 1972. He was also a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

and the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

. He was the first Roman Catholic to serve as mayor of Philadelphia.

Biography

Early life and career

He was born on April 10, 1910, in Philadelphia. He received his Bachelor of Laws from Temple University in 1938 and clerked for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. He was active in Democratic Party politics and, in 1941, won a seat in the

to an at-large seat for Philadelphia County. He won re-election to the House in 1943 and 1945. In 1951, he won a seat on the

and became the President pro tempore in 1954, which became the council president in 1955. He held that position for nearly 10 years.

Mayor of Philadelphia

Mayor

Richardson Dilworth Richardson K. Dilworth (August 29, 1898 – January 23, 1974) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the 91st mayor of Philadelphia from 1956 to 1962. He twice ran as the Democratic nominee for governor of Pennsylvania, in 1 ...

resigned his post in 1962 in order to make a second run for Governor in that fall’s

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

. As the city council president, Tate became acting mayor upon Dilworth’s resignation. He went on to win two terms in his own right, in

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...

and

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

. As a result, he is to date the longest serving mayor. In 1963, he defeated Republican James McDermott with 54% of the vote. He fended off a protest by the Congress of Racial Equality by stopping construction of the Philadelphia Municipal Services Building until more black workers were hired. In 1967, he appointed Frank Rizzo as the police commissioner. He defeated

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

Arlen Specter in 1967 by less than 12,000 votes. In 1970 and 1971, Tate served as the president of the United States Conference of Mayors.

Later life and death

Towards the end of his life, Tate lived in Longport, New Jersey. Tate died of an apparent myocardial infarction in

Somers Point Somers Point is a city that is the oldest settlement in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was settled by Europeans in 1693 and was incorporated as a borough in 1886. Somers Point was incorporated as a city in 1902. As of the 2 ...

, aged 73."Ex-Philly Mayor James Tate Dies," ''Scrantonian Tribune'', May 29, 1983.

References

External links

Description of James H. J. Tate archives
at City of Philadelphia website {{DEFAULTSORT:Tate, James Hugh Joseph 1910 births 1983 deaths Mayors of Philadelphia People from Longport, New Jersey Philadelphia City Council members 20th-century American politicians Pennsylvania Democrats Presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors