History of The Office
In 1665, Governor Richard Nicolls appointed Thomas Willett as the first mayor of New York. For 156 years, the mayor was appointed and had limited power. Between 1777 and 1821 the mayor was appointed by the Council of Appointments in which the state's governor had the loudest voice. In 1821, the Common Council, which included elected members, gained the authority to choose the mayor. An amendment to the New York State Constitution in 1834 provided for the direct popular election of the mayor. Cornelius W. Lawrence, a Democrat, was elected that year.
Gracie Mansion has been the official residence of the mayor since Fiorello La Guardia's administration in 1942. Neither Mayor Bloomberg, nor his predecessor, Rudolph Giuliani, has actually inhabited the mansion. Its main floor is open to the public and serves as a small museum.
The mayor is entitled to a salary of $225,000, but Bloomberg, the 10th-richest man in the United States, has declined the salary and instead is paid $1 yearly. Bloomberg has an estimated net worth of $25B, 2012.
In 2000, direct control of the city's public school system was transferred to the mayor's office. In 2003, the reorganization established the New York City Department of Education.
Read more about this topic: Mayor Of New York City
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“If you look at history you’ll find that no state has been so plagued by its rulers as when power has fallen into the hands of some dabbler in philosophy or literary addict.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466–1536)
“I had many problems in my conduct of the office being contrasted with President Kennedy’s conduct in the office, with my manner of dealing with things and his manner, with my accent and his accent, with my background and his background. He was a great public hero, and anything I did that someone didn’t approve of, they would always feel that President Kennedy wouldn’t have done that.”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)