Erastus Corning 2nd

His great-grandfather, Erastus Corning, was an industrialist who founded the New York Central Railroad and served in Congress and as Albany's mayor from 1834 to 1837.

Another great-grandfather, Amasa J. Parker, was a member of Congress and prominent judge.

After the 1890 death of Allan Maxwell, her mother Ellen became a successful novelist and married U.S. Navy admiral Albert S. Barker.

Corning's father was from an Albany-area family prominent in business and politics.

Corning was educated at The Albany Academy and Groton School.

Erastus Corning 2nd (October 7, 1909 – May 28, 1983) was an American politician.

Erastus Corning 2nd was born in Albany, New York on October 7, 1909, the son of Louise Maxwell and Edwin Corning.

Corning's mother was born to American parents in Cawnpore, India, where her father Allan was serving as a missionary.

Corning's father was one of the leaders of the Democratic Party organization formed by Daniel P. O'Connell, which wrested control of Albany city and county from the Republican organization led by William Barnes Jr. in the early 1920s.

Corning's father, Edwin Corning, was Lieutenant Governor of New York from 1927 to 1928.

His uncle, Parker Corning, served as a member of the United States House of Representatives.

His brother, Edwin Corning Jr.., served as a member of the New York State Assembly.

In 1928, he began attendance at Yale University.

Corning was educated at The Albany Academy, Groton School, and Yale University (class of 1932).

The Corning family was involved in several Albany-area businesses, and Corning started an insurance agency after his college graduation.

While he served as mayor, his agency did not do business with the city of Albany, but did do business with Albany County, which Corning argued presented no conflict of interest, since he was not a county official.

Corning graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1932 and was a member of the Chi Psi fraternity, Wolf's Head senior society, and Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society.

After graduating from college, Corning started an insurance company and soon entered politics.

Corning entered politics at an early age as an affiliate of the O'Connell organization, winning a seat in the New York State Assembly in 1935.

After serving in the Assembly during the 1936 legislative session, Corning won election to the New York State Senate, where he served from 1937 to 1941.

He was a member of the New York State Assembly (Albany Co., 1st D.) in 1936; and of the New York State Senate (30th D.) from 1937 to 1941, sitting in the 160th, 161st, 162nd and 163rd New York State Legislatures.

Corning was elected mayor in 1941.

He resigned his seat on August 1, 1941, to seek the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Albany.

Corning won the first of his 11 terms as mayor in November 1941, easily defeating the Republican candidate, Benjamin R. Hoff, by nearly 46,000 votes.

A Democrat, Corning served as the 72nd mayor of Albany, New York from 1942 to 1983, when Albany County was controlled by one of the last classic urban political machines in the United States.

Corning hailed from a prominent Albany family.

Corning took office on January 1, 1942.

Shortly after his first term began, the newly elected Governor Thomas E. Dewey had the powerful Albany Democratic political machine, run by "Boss" Daniel P. O'Connell, investigated.

The investigations proved largely unsuccessful and left Corning and O'Connell unscathed.

This political machine proved to be one of the most durable in American history, even outlasting the Daley family machine in Chicago.

In 1946, he was the Democratic Party's unsuccessful nominee for lieutenant governor.

In the 1970s, Corning teamed with Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller to finance construction of the Empire State Plaza, a large state government office complex near Albany's downtown area.

The plaza's tallest building, Erastus Corning Tower, was named in Corning's honor.

The O'Connell machine proved so durable that it still largely controlled Albany County until the early 1980s, one of the last such organizations to remain viable.

In the early 1980s, Corning's health began to deteriorate.

He continued to win election every four years until 1981, and served from 1941 until his death in 1983.

Corning was drafted for World War II and served in the United States Army's 2nd Infantry Division during combat in Europe.

In January 1983, he was moved to University Hospital in Boston, where he died on May 28.

Corning was buried at Albany Rural Cemetery in Menands, New York.

At over 41 years, Corning's tenure makes him Albany's longest-serving mayor,