The 172nd New York State Legislature, consisting 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 comp ...

and the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, met from January 7, 1959, to April 1, 1960, during the first and second years of

Nelson Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

governorship A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, in Albany.

Background

Under the provisions of the

New York Constitution 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 constitut ...

of 1938, re-apportioned in 1953, 58 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts for two-year terms. The senatorial districts consisted either of one or more entire counties; or a contiguous area within a single county. The counties which were divided into more than one senatorial district were Kings (nine districts), New York (six), Queens (five), Bronx (four), Erie (three), Nassau (three), Westchester (three), Monroe (two) and Onondaga (two). The Assembly districts consisted either of a single entire county (except Hamilton Co.), or of contiguous area within one county. At this time there were two major political parties: the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

and the Democratic Party. The

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

and the

Independent-Socialist Party John Thomas McManus (1904 – November 1961) was an American journalist active in progressive politics in the 1950s and 1960s best known as co-founder of the ''National Guardian'', a left-leaning newspaper. Background McManus was born in New Yo ...

also nominated tickets.

Elections

The 1958 New York state election, was held on November 4.

was elected Governor, and Assemblyman Malcolm Wilson was elected Lieutenant Governor, both Republicans, defeating the incumbent Democrats

W. Averell Harriman William Averell Harriman (November 15, 1891July 26, 1986), better known as Averell Harriman, was an American Democratic politician, businessman, and diplomat. The son of railroad baron E. H. Harriman, he served as Secretary of Commerce un ...

and George B. DeLuca. The elections of the other four statewide elective offices resulted in a Democratic State Comptroller with Liberal endorsement, a Republican Attorney General, a Democratic Court of Appeals judge with Liberal and Republican endorsement, and a Republican U.S. Senator. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Governor/Lieutenant Governor, was: Republicans 3,127,000; Democrats 2,270,000; Liberals 284,000; and Independent-Socialists 32,000. Assemblywoman

Janet Hill Gordon Janet Hill Gordon (January 11, 1915 – September 17, 1990) was an American lawyer and politician. Life She was born Janet Hill on January 11, 1915 in Manhattan, the daughter of James P. Hill (1878–1950) and Florine Hill. Her father was Presidin ...

(Rep.), a lawyer of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

, was elected to the State Senate. The other four women members of the previous legislature—Assemblywomen Bessie A. Buchanan (Dem.), a retired musical actress and dancer of

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

; ; Frances K. Marlatt (Rep.), a lawyer of

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...

;

Genesta M. Strong Genesta M. Strong (November 29, 1885 – June 29, 1972) was an American politician from New York. Life She was born Genesta Mitchell on November 29, 1885, in Brooklyn. On September 12, 1906, she married Ernest Melvin Strong (1881–1961), and the ...

(Rep.), of Plandome Heights; and Mildred F. Taylor (Rep.), a coal dealer of

Lyons Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

—were re-elected. Aileen B. Ryan (Dem.), of

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 ...

; and

Dorothy Bell Lawrence Dorothy Bell Lawrence (September 14, 1911 – May 1973) was an American politician from New York. Life She was born Dorothy Fleming Bell on September 14, 1911, in Augusta, Georgia, the daughter of Harry Rushton Bell. She graduated from Augusta Tra ...

(Rep.), of

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 ...

, both former school teachers, were also elected to the Assembly. The 1959 New York state election, was held on November 3. The only statewide elective office up for election was

Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals refers to the position of chief judge on the New York Court of Appeals. They are also known as the Chief Judge of New York. The chief judge supervises the seven-judge Court of Appeals. In addition, th ...

. The senior associate judge,

Charles S. Desmond Charles Stewart Desmond (December 2, 1896 – February 9, 1987), was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1960 to 1966. Life Desmond was born and died in Buffalo, New York. ...

, a Democrat, was elected with Republican and Liberal endorsement. Three vacancies in the State Senate and eight vacancies in the Assembly were filled. Assemblywoman

(Rep.) was elected to the State Senate, but did not take her seat in 1960.

Sessions

The Legislature met for the first regular session (the 182nd) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 7, 1959; and adjourned on March 25.

Oswald D. Heck Oswald David Heck (February 13, 1902 – May 21, 1959) was an American lawyer and politician. To date he has been the longest-serving Speaker of the New York State Assembly, and he was the last Speaker from Upstate New York. Life He was born on F ...

(Rep.) was re-elected

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

. Heck died on May 21, 1959.

Walter J. Mahoney Walter J. Mahoney (March 10, 1908 in Buffalo, New York – March 1, 1982) was an American lawyer and politician. Life He graduated from Canisius College in 1930, and from the University at Buffalo Law School. He was admitted to the bar in 1934, a ...

(Rep.) was re-elected Temporary President of the State Senate. The Legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany on July 1, 1959. Majority Leader Joseph F. Carlino (Rep.) was elected Speaker of the Assembly. The Legislature met for the second regular session (the 183rd) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 6, 1960; and adjourned in the early morning of April 1, 1960.

State Senate

Districts

Senators

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Frank Composto, D. Clinton Dominick III, Lawrence M. Rulison and Janet Hill Gordon changed from the Assembly to the Senate at the beginning of this Legislature. Assembly members Genesta M. Strong and Hunter Meighan were elected to fill vacancies in the Senate. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Secretary:

William S. King William Smith King (December 16, 1828 – February 24, 1900) was a Republican U.S. Representative for Minnesota from March 4, 1875 to March 3, 1877. He was a journalist and businessman. He is best known for allegations of political corrup ...

, until June 18, 1959, retired ** John J. Sandler, acting from June 18, 1959; elected Secretary on January 6, 1960''State Senate Elects Sandler as Secretary''
in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' on January 7, 1960 (subscription required)

State Assembly

Assemblymen

Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Clerk: Ansley B. Borkowski * Sergeant-at-Arms: Raymond J. Roche * Deputy Journal Clerk: Maude E. Ten Eyck

Notes

Sources

''FULL LIST OF LEGISLATORS''
in the ''Civil Service Leader'' (Vol. XXI, No. 23, February 16, 1960; pg. 14)

at Political Graveyard

at Political Graveyard

at Political Graveyard

at Political Graveyard {{NYLegislatures

172 Year 172 (Roman numerals, CLXXII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Scipio and Maximus (or, less frequently, year 925 ''A ...

1959 in New York (state) 1960 in New York (state) 1959 U.S. legislative sessions 1960 U.S. legislative sessions