W. Arthur Cunningham

W. Arthur Cunningham (1894 – May 5, 1934) was an American lawyer who served in the United States Army during World War I and rose to the rank of Major (United States). He received the Croix de Guerre, and became a banking executive before taking office as New York City Comptroller for five months in 1934.
==Biography==
Cunningham was born in Manhattan to Irish parents.The Irish Law Times and Solicitors' Journal, Volume 68, June 2, 1934. He grew up in Brooklyn, and attended St. James's Academy, graduating in 1910. He received an L.L.B. degree from Fordham Law School in 1915, and was admitted to the bar the following year.
Cunningham served in World War I as a Major (United States) of the 165th Infantry Brigade (United States) Army in the American Expeditionary Forces It was part of the 42nd, or Rainbow Division.Bulletin, Volume 25, General Contractors Association of New York, 1934, page 95. He fought the Germans in Lunéville, France, and in the Meuse–Argonne offensive.The New York National Guardsman, June 1934, page 6. He received the Croix de Guerre with Palm for conspicuous bravery and the Purple Heart decoration for military merit.Yearbook, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 1934.Thomas Kessner (1991). Fiorello H. La Guardia and the Making of Modern New York, Penguin Books, page 245.The New York National Guardsman, March 1934.
He was later an officer of the Textile Banking Corporation, first as counsel and later as vice president, until 1933.Charles Garrett (1961). The La Guardia Years; Machine and Reform Politics in New York City, Rutgers University Press, page 103. He and his wife, the former Agnes Evelyn Quinn whom he married in 1927, and their two sons were residents of Forest Hills (Queens).
Cunningham, an independent Democrat, successfully ran for the position of New York City Comptroller in 1933 on Mayor LaGuardia's Fusion ticket.
Arthur Mann (1969). La Guardia Comes to Power, 1933, University of Chicago Press, p. 92."Rival City Tickets for Fall Campaign". The New York Times. August 17, 1933. p. 3. In his campaign he pledged to keep the 5-cent fare if feasible. A soldier, businessman, and lawyer he had no previous experience in politics. After being sworn into office, Cunningham found the city deeply in debt. Cunningham also found that the city had been far behind in collecting property taxes from landowners. Cunningham said that the city must collect the delinquent property taxes, and that the property tax rate would likely need to be increased in order for the city to stay afloat. Cunningham disclosed the financial troubles in order to better inform the public. 
Cunningham died of a heart attack at 39 years of age four months after taking office while riding a horse in Asharoken, New York, Long Island with Raymond C. Ingersoll, son of Brooklyn Borough President Raymond V. Ingersoll, on May 5, 1934. He was 39 years old. Mayor LaGuardia ordered that flags be at half mast for ten days as a tribute to Cunningham.
His body was buried in Calvary Cemetery (Queens, New York) near Long Island City. Borough President George U. Harvey, a friend, thought that Cunningham's death was caused in part by his worries about the city's problems."City Pays Tribute to Cunningham". The New York Times. May 8, 1934. p. 23. 
Category:1894 births
Category:1934 deaths
Category:American lawyers
Category:American businessmen
Category:American military officers