Samuel S. Ferster

Samuel S. Ferster (March 15, 1898 – March 28, 1967) was an American attorney and Republican Party politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1938 to 1941, and later served as a Judge of the New Jersey Workers Compensation Court.

Samuel S. Ferster
New Jersey State Assemblyman
In office
January 1938 – July 1941
Preceded byLeo P. Carlin
Succeeded byGloanna W. MacCarthy
Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor
In office
1951–1954
Personal details
Born
Samuel S. Ferster

(1898-03-15)March 15, 1898
Russia
DiedMarch 28, 1967(1967-03-28) (aged 69)
Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseRuth Ferster
ChildrenJoan Corson and Lila Botnick

Early years

Ferster grew up in Newark and Rahway. He graduated City College of New York and New Jersey Law School. He served in the U.S. Air Force during World War I from 1917 to 1919. He was a member of the 612th Aero Squadron.[1]

Political career

In 1937, he was elected to the New Jersey State Assembly, representing Essex County. Among the incumbent Democrats he defeated in that election was Leo P. Carlin, who would go on to serve as Mayor of Newark. He was re-elected in 1938, 1939, 1940, and 1941. Among the Democrats he defeated in 1940 were Peter W. Rodino, who would go on to serve 40 years as a Congressman, and John J. Francis, who would serve fourteen years as an Associate Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court.[2]

During his nearly four years as an Assemblyman, Ferster served as Chairman of the Assembly Labor Committee.[3]

Ferster led a protest of Nazi persecution of minorities in Orange, New Jersey on February 25, 1939.[4]

In 1940, Governor A. Harry Moore signed legislation sponsored by Ferster that required New Jersey students to attend school at least until the age of 16, and prohibited children under the age of 12 from working.[5]

Governor Charles Edison appointed him to serve as a Commissioner of the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission in 1941. He resigned from the State Assembly in July 1941, following his confirmation by the New Jersey State Senate.[6]

In 1951, Ferster joined the Administration of Governor Alfred Driscoll as the Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor and as Director of the Division of Compensation.[7]

Governor Robert B. Meyner appointed Ferster to serve as a Judge of the New Jersey Workers Compensation Court.[8]

Following his death in 1967, friends and colleagues established the Samuel J. Ferster Scholarship at Rutgers University Law School.[9]

Electoral history

New Jersey General Assembly (1940)

12 Seats Elected At-Large from Essex County[10]

WinnerPartyVotesLoserPartyVotes
Samuel S. FersterRepublican177,775John J. FrancisDemocrat136,241
Dominic A. CavicchiaRepublican177,314Mary C. O'MalleyDemocrat135,862
Edgar Williamson, Jr.Republican176,145Joseph N. BraffDemocrat134,503
Frank S. HargraveRepublican175,359John A. Couch, Jr.Democrat132,699
Olive C. SanfordRepublican175,280Peter W. RodinoDemocrat132,393
Frank S. PlattsRepublican174,989James A. CallahanDemocrat132,262
Lester E. MahrRepublican174,580William J. BrineDemocrat131,947
Adolph WegrockiRepublican172,400Peter NiemiecDemocrat131,146
C. Milford OrbanRepublican171,242Roger M. YanceyDemocrat129,866
Jacob S. GlickenhausRepublican171,008William R. Connors, Jr.Democrat129,270
Constance W. HandRepublican170,522Norman B. GrobertDemocrat128,873
R. Graham HuntingtonRepublican170,182Mercedes UthDemocrat125,898

References
  1. Fitzgerald's Manual of the New Jersey Legislature. Trenton, NJ: Joseph J. Gribbons. 1941.
  2. Fitzgerald's Manual of the New Jersey Legislature. Trenton, NJ: Joseph J. Gribbons. 1941.
  3. "JERSEY SENATORS VOTE SIT-DOWN BAN; Labor Relations Bill, With an Anti-Stay-In Clause, Meets Delay in Assembly FUND MEASURE REJECTED Plan to Recess Until Fall Hits a Snag--Governor Offers Water-Supply Proposal Wants Labor Group to See Bill Bill Called "Fair Compromise"". New York Times. 25 May 1938.
  4. "Plan Nazi Protest at Orange". New York Times. 24 February 1939.
  5. "SCHOOL AGE RAISED TO 16 BY JERSEY; Moore Signs Bill Widening Restrictions and Barring Work for Those Under 12". New York Times. 26 June 1940.
  6. "TWO LEGISLATORS RESIGN IN JERSEY; Senators Foran and Driscoll, Republican Members, Will Assume New Posts HIGHER PAY IS INVOLVED Action of Both Is Taken Before the State Body Recesses Until November". New York Times. 30 July 1941.
  7. "Jersey Official Named". New York Times. 1 July 1951.
  8. Fitzgerald's Manual of the New Jersey Legislature. Trenton, NJ: Joseph J. Gribbons. 1955.
  9. "Fellowships, Scholarships, and Grants". catalogs.rutgers.edu/. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
  10. Legislative Manual of New Jersey. Trenton, NJ: Joseph J. Gribbons. 1941.
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