Role of Jews in Development of New York Lauded by Mayor

The role which Jews played in developing the city of New York was emphasized here today by Mayor Robert F. Wagner at a special City Hall ceremony during which he appointed Stanley Lowell, his assistant, as his official representative to the American Jewish Tercentennary.

“Throughout the last three centuries,” the Mayor said, “the Jews have been a vital, constructive and stimulating element in the life of our city. During the American Revolution, they were among the fighters for American independence. When the British occupied New York City, Rabbi Gershom Mendes Seixas and his congregants refused to conduct services in the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue and fled to Philadelphia, where they helped the American cause. They returned to New York only after the British had left our city.

“In the late Nineteenth Century, about 75 years ago, when pogroms and oppression were rampant in Russia and other Eastern European countries, Jews were among the millions of immigrants from those parts of Europe who streamed into the United States seeking refuge. They helped make New York a city of energy and vitality. They have contributed to virtually every phase of the development of New York City.”

Mr. Lowell, in accepting the appointment, stated that within the next few weeks, in cooperation with the American Jewish Tercentenary, he will work out plans for New York City’s official share in the celebration. “The American Jewish Tercentenary is important to the City of New York,” Mr. Lowell said. “Since the arrival of the first 23 Jewish settlers 300 years ago, our Jewish population has grown to more than 2,000,000, making it the largest in the world. All around us, in our religious and cultural life, in our commercial and professional activities, we see tangible evidence of the useful and constructive participation of the Jews of New York. We are proud of that participation, and proud to commemorate it on the occasion of the Tercentenary.”