The 87th Mayor of New York City, Abram Stevens Hewitt, was born on July 31, 1822, in Haverstraw, New York. In the mid‑1800s, he co‑founded an iron mill in Trenton, New Jersey, that rolled the wrought‑iron beams used in some of the earliest metal‑framed high‑rise buildings, helping architects move beyond load‑bearing masonry and enabling the rise of towering urban centers. Hewitt’s life work was centered on forging the literal backbone of the modern American city; the structural iron from his mills gave builders the strength to build upward, mirroring the surging ambition of an industrial age.
Beyond his industrial achievements, Hewitt is widely considered the “Father of the New York City Subway System.”
He understood that a growing city needed an efficient transit network, viewing the subway as a vital circulatory system that would allow the population to move freely. By championing municipal ownership and helping pass the Rapid Transit Act of 1894, he made possible the construction of the first subway line, connecting remote neighborhoods to industrial centers and weaving a shared civic infrastructure that let the city’s economic benefits circulate through every layer of society.
