John H. Mulroy

Who was John H. Mulroy?

John Howard Mulroy was a 20th-century politician most notable for having served as the first county executive of Onondaga County, New York.

Mulroy was born to Morris, a dairy farmer, and Elizabeth, a former schoolteacher. His father served as the Marcellus supervisor on the Onondaga County Board of Supervisors from 1937 to 1953, when the senior Mulroy died in office.

Mulroy served as a bomber pilot in the United States Air Force for three years during World War II, and was married September 15, 1945 to the former Virginia Spaulding. He graduated with a degree in history from the University College of Syracuse University and initially earned a living by delivering milk from his family's dairy.

He began his political career by getting elected to his father's old position on the County Board of Supervisors, starting in 1957 and rising to Chairman of the Board in 1961. In the 1961 election, Onondaga County voters approved the adoption of a new county charter which provided for the creation of the office of county executive. The Board of Supervisors appointed then-Chairman Mulroy as the first county executive to serve a one-year term before the office was to become elective.