Foster Furcolo
John Foster Furcolo (July 29, 1911 – July 5, 1995) was an American lawyer, writer, and Democratic Party politician from Massachusetts. He was the state's 60th governor, and also represented the state as a member of the United States House of Representatives. He was the first Italian-American governor of the state, and an active promoter of community colleges.
Foster Furcolo
July 29, 1911
New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.
July 5, 1995 (aged 83)
Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.
Lawyer
United States
United States Navy
Born in New Haven, Connecticut and educated at Yale, Furcolo practiced law before serving in the United States Navy during World War II. He first won election to Congress in 1948, and served most of two terms, resigning after being appointed Massachusetts Treasurer in 1952 by Governor Paul A. Dever. He won two terms as governor, serving from 1957 to 1961. In addition to supporting community colleges, he also furthered the redevelopment of parts of Boston, supporting development of the Prudential Center and Government Center. His administration was overshadowed by corruption scandals, but no charges against him made it to trial. He was twice an unsuccessful candidate for the United States Senate. He was the author of several books, including a novel set amid events surrounding the World War II Katyn massacre.
Early years[edit]
John Foster Furcolo was born in New Haven, Connecticut, on July 29, 1911.[1] His father, Charles Furcolo, was an Italian immigrant and a doctor,[2] and his mother was an Irish immigrant.[3] Furcolo attended public schools in Longmeadow, Massachusetts and New Haven. He then attended Yale University, where he graduated in 1933, and finally Yale Law School, where he received his LL.B. in 1936.[1] At Yale he played a variety of sports, serving on both the boxing team (as a welterweight) and the baseball team. According to his brother Charles, he played second base. He was undefeated as a boxer and was encouraged to turn professional, but chose not to. He also engaged in literary pursuits, writing short stories and plays that were produced locally.[4][5] Furcolo dropped use of his first name when he entered politics.[6]
In 1937 Furcolo moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, where he opened a law practice.[7] He specialized in criminal and civil trial work, and quickly rose in prominence, the quality of his legal preparation and trial work receiving favorable notice from others in the legal community.[7][8] After a few years he moved his growing family to neighboring Longmeadow. He made his first bid for public office in 1942, an unsuccessful run for district attorney. During World War II he served in U.S. Navy as a lieutenant (junior grade) aboard USS Kershaw, a transport vessel in the Pacific, which participated in the Invasion of Okinawa.[6][7]
He was a member of the Indian Orchard Council number 183 of the Knights of Columbus.[9]
Massachusetts Treasurer[edit]
On July 5, 1952, Furcolo was appointed by Governor Paul A. Dever to be the Treasurer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,[21] to replace John E. Hurley, who had resigned to accept a position as clerk of the Boston Municipal Court.[3] Dever made the appointment in part to break up what was seen as Irish-American domination of the government.[22] Congress was in recess at the time of the appointment, so Furcolo did not formally resign his Congressional seat until September.[3] In November 1952, Furcolo was elected in his own right to the Treasurer's office despite Dever's loss of the governor's seat; he held that position until January 1955.[23][24]
In 1954 Furcolo ran for the U.S. Senate, but was narrowly defeated by incumbent Republican Leverett A. Saltonstall. The election exposed the personal feud between Furcolo and Kennedy to the public. Kennedy refused to make a public endorsement of Furcolo in a televised appearance,[6] and Saltonstall recounted in his memoir that Kennedy's campaign staff worked with his in opposition to Furcolo, and that Saltonstall regularly announced legislation he and Kennedy had cosponsored.[25] Furcolo later learned that Kennedy had lent Ted Sorensen, a key member of his staff, to the Saltonstall campaign, and that Kennedy's father Joseph had financially supported Saltonstall's campaign.[26]
Second run for Senate[edit]
In 1960 Furcolo again ran for the U.S. Senate, and was widely expected to gain the Democratic Party nomination easily. However, former Springfield mayor Thomas O'Connor capitalized on the corruption scandals during Furcolo's administration and defeated him in the primary.[41] Furcolo attributed his defeat to his support for the sales tax proposal.[6]
During Furcolo's lame-duck period, John F. Kennedy resigned his Senate seat in December 1960 after winning the presidential election, putting Furcolo in position to appoint a temporary replacement. He initially sought to appoint himself, but was pressured by the Kennedys to appoint Benjamin Smith (a college roommate of Kennedy's brother Joseph) instead. The Kennedys wanted the seat to go to younger brother Edward (as it eventually did in the November 1962 special election), but he was ineligible due to age at the time of the appointment.[42]
Family, awards, and legacy[edit]
Furcolo was married three times. His first wife Kay, with whom he had five children, died in 1964. In 1967 he married Lucy Carra, who also served as a federal administrative law judge; they had no children.[47][48] Estranged from Lucy in 1972, he became embroiled in legal disputes with her relatives after her death in 1979.[49] In 1980, Furcolo married Constance M. Gleason, who survived him.[6][50]
In 2009 Furcolo's support of community colleges was commemorated when the state formally named its network the Governor Foster Furcolo Community College System.[51] He was awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta by the government of Poland for his role in the investigation of Katyn, and he also received the Italian Star of Solidarity.[8] He was awarded honorary degrees from Boston University, Portia Law School, Suffolk University, the University of Massachusetts, and a number of other schools.[8]
In addition to books, Furcolo wrote articles, stories and essays for a wide variety of publications.[8] His books include:
