Thomas Burke | |
|---|---|
 Burke in 1954 | |
| United States Senator fromOhio | |
| In office November 10, 1953 – December 2, 1954 | |
| Appointed by | Frank Lausche |
| Preceded by | Robert A. Taft |
| Succeeded by | George H. Bender |
| 48thMayor of Cleveland | |
| In office January 4, 1945 – December 31, 1953 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Lausche |
| Succeeded by | Anthony J. Celebrezze |
| 11thPresident of the United States Conference of Mayors | |
| In office 1953 | |
| Preceded by | Martin H. Kennelly |
| Succeeded by | Elmer Robinson |
| Vice Mayor and Legal Director of Cleveland | |
| In office 1941–1945 | |
| Mayor | Frank Lausche |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1898-10-30)October 30, 1898 |
| Died | December 5, 1971(1971-12-05) (aged 73) Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | College of the Holy Cross (BA) Case Western Reserve University (LLB) |
Thomas Aloysius Burke (October 30, 1898 – December 5, 1971) was an American politician fromOhio. A member of theDemocratic Party, he served as the 48thmayor ofCleveland,Ohio, from 1946 to 1953 and in theUnited States Senate from November 10, 1953 until December 2, 1954.Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport is named after him.
Burke was born inCleveland,Ohio on October 30, 1898. DuringWorld War I, Burke served in theUnited States Army.[1] In 1920, he graduated from theCollege of the Holy Cross and in 1923 he graduated fromWestern Reserve University School of Law.[2]
In 1930, Burke became as assistant county prosecutor. In 1937, theOhio Attorney General,Herbert S. Duffy commissioned an investigation of an election fraud case inLawrence County, Ohio. Burke was appointed as the special counsel to prosecute the case of six people accused of breaking into the election board and tampering with votes for the county commissioner's race.[3]In 1941, Burke became vice mayor ofCleveland. He was also simultaneously the Director of Law for Cleveland, the city's chief legal advisor.[4]
With the election of MayorFrank Lausche asgovernor of Ohio in1944, Burke was first in the line of succession to replace him, and therefore became mayor on January 4, 1945.[5] Burke has to stand for re-election in his own right later in1945, defeating Ray C. Miller with nearly 68% of the vote.[6][7]
In1947, Burke faced off againstEliot Ness, the former Treasury agent who pursuedAl Capone and later became the Cleveland Director of Public Safety. Despite Ness’ fame, Burke won re-election in a second landslide with more than 66% of the vote and a majority of more than 80,000 votes.[8] Burke went on to win two more times, in1949 and1951.
In 1947, theUnited States Army Corps of Engineers completed a retaining wall and landfill, the city completed work on a 3,600-foot dirt runway and opened its newdowntown airport to air traffic.[9] Burke was credited with improvements at the site over the years and, in 1960, Municipal Airport was renamed Burke Lakefront for the former mayor.[10]
In 1953, Burke served as the president of theUnited States Conference of Mayors.[11]
On October 12, 1953,Governor Frank Lausche appointed Burke to succeedRobert A. Taft, who died of cancer on July 31, 1953, in the United States Senate. Burke took Taft's seat on November 10, after his term as mayor ended.[12] Burke ran againstGeorge H. Bender in the1954 special election to serve out the remainder of Taft's term. Burke was defeated by only 7,070 votes and demanded a recount, which narrowed Bender's margin, but did not overturn the results.[13][14] After his defeat, Burke resumed the practice of law forming the influential Cleveland law firm of Burke, Haber and Berick (now McDonald Hopkins Burke and Haber).
Burke was married to Josephine (Lyon) Burke and had two daughters. He died of undisclosed causes on December 5, 1971, atSt. Vincent Charity Medical Center in Cleveland, where he'd been admitted the day before.[15] He was buried atCalvary Cemetery in Cleveland.[16]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromOhio (Class 3) 1954 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Mayor of Cleveland 1946–1953 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 3) from Ohio 1953–1954 Served alongside:John W. Bricker | Succeeded by |
| Class 1 |  | |
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| Class 3 | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
