Richard Croker
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Richard Welstead Croker (November 24, 1843 – April 29, 1922), known as "Boss Croker," was an Irish American
political boss In politics, a boss is a person who controls a faction or local branch of a political party. They do not necessarily hold public office themselves; most historical bosses did not, at least during the times of their greatest influence. Numerous of ...
who was a leader of
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
's
Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...
. His control over the city was cemented with the 1897 election of Robert A. Van Wyck as the first
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of all five
boroughs A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...
. During his tenure as Grand Sachem, Boss Croker garnered a reputation for corruption and ruthlessness and was frequently the subject of investigations. As his power waned following the 1900 and 1901 elections, Croker resigned his position and returned to
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, where he spent the rest of his life.


Biography

Richard Croker was born in the
townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
of Ballyva, in the parish of Ardfield, six miles south of
Clonakilty Clonakilty (; ), sometimes shortened to Clon, is a town in County Cork, Ireland. The town is located at the head of the tidal Clonakilty Bay. The rural hinterland is used mainly for dairy farming. The town's population as of 2016 was 4,592. Th ...
in
County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
on November 24, 1843, son of Eyre Coote Croker (1800–1881) and Frances Laura Welsted (1807–1894). He was taken to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
by his parents when he was just two years old. They boarded the ''Henry Clay'' in Cobh, County Cork and headed for the land of opportunity. There were significant differences between this family and the typical family leaving Ireland at that time. They were
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, and were not land tenants. Eyre Coote Croker owned an estate in Ardfield, in southwest Cork. Upon arrival in the United States, Eyre Coote Croker was without a profession, but he had a general knowledge of horses and soon became a veterinary surgeon. During the Civil War, he served in that same capacity under General Daniel Sickles. Richard Croker was educated in New York public schools. Croker dropped out of school at age twelve or thirteen to become an apprentice machinist in the
Harlem Railroad The New York and Harlem Railroad (now the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem Line) was one of the first railroads in the United States, and was the world's first street railway. Designed by John Stephenson, it was opened in stages between 1832 and ...
machine shops. Not long after, he became a valued member of the Fourth Avenue Tunnel Gang, a street gang that attacked teamsters and other workers that gathered around the Harlem line's freight depot. Croker eventually became the gang's leader. He joined one of the Volunteer Fire Departments in 1863, becoming an engineer of one of the engine companies. That was his gateway into public life. James O'Brien, a Tammany associate, took notice of Croker after Croker won a boxing match against Dick Lynch whereby Crocker knocked out all of Lynch's teeth. Croker became a member of
Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...
and active in its politics. In the 1860s he was well known for being a "repeater" at elections, voting multiple times at the polls. He was an
alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...
from 1868–70,
Coroner of New York County, New York The Coroner of New York City issued death certificates and performed autopsies and inquests for New York County, New York for all homicides, suicides and accidental deaths and any suspicious deaths. The office served only Manhattan until 18 ...
from 1873–76. Croker was charged with the murder of John McKenna, a lieutenant of James O'Brien, during a fight on election day of 1874 with O'Brien's rival political group. O'Brien was running for Congress against the Tammany-backed Abram S. Hewitt. John Kelly, the new Tammany Hall boss, attended the trial and Croker was freed after the jury was undecided. Croker moved to Harrison, New York by 1880. He was appointed the
New York City Fire Commissioner The New York City Fire Commissioner is the civilian administrator of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), appointed by the Mayor of the City of New York. There have been 34 commissioners excluding Acting Fire Commissioners, and 38 commission ...
in 1883 and 1887 and city
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from 1889-90. After the death of John Kelly, Croker became the leader of Tammany Hall, and for some time almost completely controlled that organization. As head of Tammany, Croker received bribe money from the owners of
brothels A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub ...
,
saloons Saloon may refer to: Buildings and businesses * One of the bars in a traditional British pub * An alternative name for a bar (establishment) * Western saloon, a historical style of American bar * The Saloon, a bar and music venue in San Francisc ...
and illegal
gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...
dens. Croker was chairman of Tammany's Finance Committee but received no salary for his position. Croker also became a partner in the real estate firm Meyer and Croker with Peter F. Meyer, from which he made substantial money. This money was often derived from sales under the control of the city through city judges. Other income came by way of gifts of stock from street railway and transit companies, for example. The city police were largely still under the control of Tammany Hall, and payoffs from vice protection operations also contributed to Tammany income. Croker survived
Charles Henry Parkhurst Charles Henry Parkhurst (April 17, 1842 – September 8, 1933) was an American clergyman and social reformer, born in Framingham, Massachusetts. Although scholarly and reserved, he preached two sermons in 1892 in which he attacked the polit ...
's attacks on Tammany Hall's corruption and became a wealthy man. Several committees were established in the 1890s, largely at the behest of Thomas C. Platt and other Republicans, to investigate Tammany and Croker, including the 1890 Fassett Committee, the 1894 Lexow Committee, during which Croker left the United States for his European residences for three years, and the Mazet Investigation of 1899. Croker's greatest political success was his bringing about the 1897 election of Robert A. Van Wyck as first mayor of the five-
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...
"greater" New York, and during Van Wyck's administration Croker is popularly supposed to have completely dominated the government of the city. Croker was in the newspapers in 1899 after a disagreement with Jay Gould's son, George Gould, president of the Manhattan Elevated Railroad Company, when Gould refused Croker's attempt to attach compressed-air pipes to the Elevated company's structures. Croker owned many shares of the New York Auto-Truck Company, a company which would have benefited from the arrangement. In response to the refusal, Croker used Tammany influence to create new city laws requiring drip pans under structures in Manhattan at every street crossing and the requirement that the railroad run trains every five minutes with a $100 violation for every instance. Croker also held 2,500 shares of the American Ice Company, worth approximately $250,000, which came under scrutiny in 1900 when the company attempted to raise the price of ice in the city. After Croker's failure to carry the city in the presidential election of 1900 and the defeat of his mayoralty candidate, Edward M. Shepard in 1901, he resigned from his position of leadership in Tammany and was succeeded by Lewis Nixon. He departed the United States in 1905.
1915 U.S. Passport Application for Richard W. Croker, accessed April 2017
An associate described Croker as having " strong frame, a deep chest, a short neck and a pair of hard fists... He speaks in monosyllables, ndcommands a vocabulary that appears to be limited to about three hundred words..."


Thoroughbred racing

Croker operated a stable of
thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...
racehorses Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...
in the United States in partnership with Mike Dwyer. In January 1895, they sent a stable of horses to England under the care of trainer Hardy Campbell, Jr. and jockey
Willie Simms Willie Simms (January 16, 1870 – February 26, 1927) was an American National Champion jockey in Thoroughbred racing and a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee who won five of the races that would become the U.S. Triple Crown series. An African ...
. Following a dispute, the partnership was dissolved in May but Croker continued to race in England. In 1907, his horse
Orby __NOTOC__ Orby is a village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England.OS Explorer map: Skegness, Alford & Spilsby: (1:25 000): It is situated approximately east from the town of Spilsby, and west from the seaside ...
won Britain's most prestigious race, The Derby. Orby was ridden by American jockey
John Reiff John "Knickerbocker" Reiff (1885–1974) was an American flat racing jockey, whose greatest successes came in Great Britain where he won three Classics. Reiff came to England with his older brother Lester to ride for the American trainer Eno ...
, whose brother
Lester Lester is an ancient Anglo-Saxon surname and given name. Notable people and characters with the name include: People Given name * Lester Bangs (1948–1982), American music critic * Lester W. Bentley (1908–1972), American artist from Wisc ...
had won the race in 1901. Croker was also the breeder of Orby's son Grand Parade, who won the Derby in 1919.


Death

Croker returned to Ireland in 1905 and died on April 29, 1922, at Glencairn House, his home in Stillorgan outside Dublin. His funeral, celebrated by South African bishop William Miller, drew some of Dublin's most eminent citizens; the pallbearers were
Arthur Griffith Arthur Joseph Griffith ( ga, Art Seosamh Ó Gríobhtha; 31 March 1871 – 12 August 1922) was an Irish writer, newspaper editor and politician who founded the political party Sinn Féin. He led the Irish delegation at the negotiations that prod ...
, the
President of Dáil Éireann President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...
;
Laurence O'Neill Laurence O'Neill (4 March 1864 – 26 July 1943) was an Irish politician and corn merchant. O'Neill was elected to Dáil Éireann as an independent Teachta Dála (TD) for Dublin Mid at the 1922 general election. He did not contest the 1923 ...
, the
Lord Mayor of Dublin The Lord Mayor of Dublin ( ga, Ardmhéara Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ga, Cathaoirleach, links=no ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. Th ...
; Oliver St. John Gogarty;
Joseph MacDonagh Joseph Michael MacDonagh (18 May 1883 – 25 December 1922) was an Irish Sinn Féin politician. He was born in Cloughjordan, County Tipperary. His parents Joseph MacDonagh and Mary Parker were both national schoolteachers. His brothers includ ...
; A.H. Flauley, of Chicago; and J.E. Tierney. Michael Collins, Chairman of the
Provisional Government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or ...
, was represented by Kevin O'Shiel; the Lord Lieutenant, Viscount FitzAlan, was represented by his under-secretary, James MacMahon. In 1927, J. J. Walsh claimed that, just before his death, Croker had accepted the Provisional Government's invitation to stand in Dublin County in the imminent Irish election.


Family

Croker married twice; first, in 1873, to Elizabeth Fraser (b. abt. 1853 in New York, d. 6 September 1914 in Berne, Switzerland).
1880 U.S. Federal Census: Richard Croker. Accessed April 2017.

1890 U.S. Passport Application of Richard Croker and family. Accessed April 2017.
They had several children, including: *Richard Samuel Croker "Jr." (30 March 1877 in New York – aft. 1940), attended Brown University and married 12 March 1898 to Mary Brophy, without issue. *Francis H. "Frank" Croker (15 Sep 1878 in Fordham, Bronx County, New York – 22 Jan 1905 in
Ormond Beach Ormond Beach is a city in central Florida in Volusia County. The population was 43,080 at the 2020 census. Ormond Beach lies directly north of Daytona Beach and is a principal city of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach, FL Metropolitan ...
, Florida). His monumental grave was erected by his father following his death from injuries sustained in avoiding a motorcyclist while automobile racing. No issue. *Joseph Croker (January 1880 in New York – bef. 1890) *Herbert Vincent "Bertie" Croker (abt. 1882 USA – 12 May 1905) *Florence Genevieve Croker (b. 7 October 1884 in Manhattan, New York), married at least two times. *Howard F. Croker (b. 5 May 1886 in New York City, New York – January 1979), married 1 May 1915 on Long Island to Gertrude White (b. 19 Oct 1893, Cedarhurst, Long Island, New York)
1923 U.S. Passport Application of Gertrude White Croker, accessed April 2017
*Ethel J. Croker (b. 16 July 1888 in New York City, New York),
1914 U.S. Passport Application of Ethel J. Croker. Accessed April 2017.
married Thomas Francis White (b. 19 December 1882). He married Beulah Benson Edmondson (1884–1957) in November 1914 when he was 71 years old. She was of American Indian and Alaska Native, American Indian descent, her tribal name being Ketaw Kaluntuchy.


Disputed will

Croker left an estate estimated to $3–5 million to his second wife, Beulah, disinheriting his estranged children. He had converted to Catholicism shortly before his death but this does not appear to have played a role in his disinheriting his children. A note in his handwriting, dated at Glencairn, November 15, 1919 read as follows: Croker's other surviving children, Richard, Ethel, and Howard, unsuccessfully challenged the will in a celebrated probate lawsuit in the Court of King's Bench in Ireland. They claimed that their father in 1919 was of unsound mind and unduly influenced by his wife, and that the 1914 marriage was void as she was already married to one Guy R. Marone. A jury rejected all these allegations.; The widow and children had related lawsuits in the United States.Croker v. Croker, 168 N.E. 450 (NY 1929)

Croker v. Croker, 51 F.2d 11 (5th Cir. 1931)
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References

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Further reading

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Croker, Richard 1843 births 1922 deaths 19th-century Irish people 20th-century Irish people People from County Cork Leaders of Tammany Hall American racehorse owners and breeders Owners of Epsom Derby winners Converts to Roman Catholicism Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) American political bosses from New York (state) New York (state) Democrats Coroners of New York County, New York