Thomas G. Dunn
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Thomas Gerard Dunn (April 9, 1921 – February 11, 1998) was an American
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
politician who was a longtime Mayor of Elizabeth, New Jersey. His 28 years leading the city made him what some believed was the longest-serving mayor of a city in the United States with more than 100,000 people. However, Joseph P. Riley Jr. was mayor of
Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, (population 120,000) for over 40 years. Dunn also served in the
New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232, ...
from 1973 to 1977, representing the 21st Legislative District, and in the
New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...
from 1992 to 1994 where he represented the 20th Legislative District. During the 1972 presidential election, Dunn served as a national co-chairman of Democrats for Nixon and was a frequent supporter of other Republican national and state candidates.


Biography

Dunn was born on April 9, 1921, and raised in
Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...
, where he attended
St. Mary of the Assumption High School St. Mary of the Assumption High School is a small Catholic high school on Broad Street in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth, in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, New Jersey, United States. The old high school building consists of a three-st ...
and Newark's Vail School of Business. He enlisted in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
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 ...
, serving as an aerial gunner. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the
Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...
. After completing his military service he helped found Local 1470 of the
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is a labor union that represents approximately 775,000 workers and retirees in the electrical industry in the United States, Canada, Guam, Panama, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands; ...
while working at the
Kearny, New Jersey Kearny ( ) is a town in the western part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 40,684,Western Electric The Western Electric Company was an American electrical engineering and manufacturing company officially founded in 1869. A wholly owned subsidiary of American Telephone & Telegraph for most of its lifespan, it served as the primary equipment ma ...
facility.


Mayor

In his first bid for elected office in 1950, he fell six votes short of winning in a seat on the Elizabeth City Council, but came back and won in 1952. He was elected to the Union County
Board of Chosen Freeholders In New Jersey, a Board of County Commissioners (until 2020 named the Board of Chosen Freeholders) is the elected county-wide government board in each of the state's 21 counties. In the five counties that have an elected county executive, the b ...
in 1959. He ran for Mayor of Elizabeth and lost in 1961, but was elected to the first of seven four-year terms in office in 1964. FBI agents later released audio recordings of a meeting between Dunn and Mafia boss Sam 'The Plumber' DeCavalcante, during which the politician accepted cash, promised to deliver city work and was asked to tell two other individuals to "keep their mouths shut." During the 1980s, Dunn hired Mafia soldier JoJo Ferarra as a municipal inspector on the city payroll. In the wake of the
1967 Newark riots The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...
, Dunn issued orders to use deadly force if rioting erupted in the city, which was credited with preventing the spread of unrest to Elizabeth. After gasoline stations ran low on supplies following the
1973 oil crisis The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had supp ...
, Dunn made Elizabeth one of the first cities in the nation to impose odd-even rationing. He angered many in the large Hispanic community in the 1980s, when he ordered that all city business be conducted in the English language. He was sworn into his seventh, and what he said would be his final, term of office as mayor in 1989, making him what ''
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 ...
'' described as being "believed to be the longest-serving mayor of a city of more than 100,000 residents". Despite his assurances that he would not run for mayor again, Dunn ran in the 1992 Democratic primary and lost his bid for the nomination to James Christian Bollwage, who went on the win in the November elections by a 3-1 margin over his Republican challenger. During the 1972 United States presidential election, Dunn served as one of the national co-chairman of Democrats for Nixon. Dunn was "read out of the party" in 1974 for his support of the Republican Nixon. He supported
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
in the 1980 presidential race, but became the New Jersey chair of Democrats for Reagan in 1984. He bucked the Democratic Party again in 1993, serving as state co-chair of Democrats supporting Republican
Christine Todd Whitman Christine Temple Whitman (née Todd; born September 26, 1946) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001 and as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration o ...
in her successful race against Democratic incumbent
James Florio James Joseph Florio (August 29, 1937 – September 25, 2022) was an American politician who served as the 49th governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994. He was previously the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district from 19 ...
.


Senator and Assemblyman

He was elected to the New Jersey Senate in 1973, where he opposed passage of the
Equal Rights Amendment The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and ...
. After a single term in the Senate, Dunn was dropped by the Union County Democrats and was replaced on the party line by John T. Gregorio. Dunn ran as an independent and lost to Gregorio in the general election.NJ Senate District 21 - History
OurCampaigns.com. Accessed July 15, 2010.
His staunch conservative ideology, dubious ethical standing and irascible personality earned Dunn a spirited primary election challenge from progressive Democrat James J. Devine when he ran for the General Assembly in 1991. Subsequent to his slim nomination victory, Dunn won an uncontested general election with running mate George Hudak. Dunn declined to seek another term in the Legislature in 1993, after losing his mayoralty the previous year.


Personal

Dunn shared his passion for Irish music and culture on ''Tom Dunn's Irish Show'', which ran on radio station
WJDM WJDM (1520 AM ''Radio Cantico Nuevo'') is a radio station licensed to Mineola, New York, broadcasting a Spanish language Christian radio format. The station is owned by Cantico Nuevo Ministry, Inc. WJDM broadcasts during daytime hours only, fro ...
from 1974 to 1992. In 1982, Mr. Dunn founded the Thornsticks, a local charitable group that quietly helped families in need. The name was taken from the crooked walking sticks used in Ireland. The son of James J. Dunn and Mary Ellen Moran Dunn, Dunn died at age 76 on February 11, 1998, at his home in Elizabeth due to
prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...
. He was survived by his second wife, Sally, as well as a son, Thomas G Dunn Jr. (1947-) and his wife Elizabeth, a daughter, Kathleen Dunn Priestley (1952-) and her husband Robert, and three grandchildren, Brian Priestley (1979–2008), Mairin Priestley (1982-) and Meghan Dunn (1993-). His first wife, Ruth, had died in 1989.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Thomas G. 1921 births 1998 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Mayors of Elizabeth, New Jersey Democratic Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly New Jersey city council members County commissioners in New Jersey Democratic Party New Jersey state senators Politicians from Union County, New Jersey Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) United States Navy sailors 20th-century American politicians