James F. Hastings

James Hastings
James Hastings
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives; from New York
	In office; January 3, 1969 – January 20, 1976
Preceded by	Charles E. Goodell
Succeeded by	Stanley N. Lundine
Constituency	38th district (1969–1973); 39th district (1973–1976)
Member of the New York Senate
	In office; January 1, 1966 – December 31, 1968
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Jess J. Present
Constituency	65th district (1966); 57th district (1967–68)
Member of the New York State Assembly; from the Cattaraugus County district
	In office; January 1, 1963 – December 31, 1965
Preceded by	Jeremiah J. Moriarty
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	James Fred Hastings; April 10, 1926; Olean, New York, U.S.
Died	October 24, 2014 (aged 88); Allegany, New York, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Barbara Gaylor; Kathleen Smith
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1943–1946
Battles/wars	World War II

James Fred Hastings (April 10, 1926 – October 24, 2014) was an American radio station executive and a Republican politician from New York.

Early life[edit]

Hastings was born on April 10, 1926, in Olean, New York. He graduated from Allegany Central School in 1943, and joined the United States Navy for World War II. After he returned home in 1946 he worked as a carpenter, and then worked as a sales representative for Procter & Gamble.

Hastings later became active in several businesses, including manager and vice president of radio station WHDL from 1952-1966, national advertising manager for the Times Herald newspaper in Olean from 1964-1966, and a partner in the real estate and insurance firm of Hastings & Jewell.

He was a member of the Allegany Town Board from 1953 to 1962, and was the town's police court justice for five years.

Political career[edit]

Hastings was a member the New York State Assembly (Cattaraugus Co.) from 1963 to 1965, sitting in the 174th and 175th New York State Legislatures; and a member of the New York State Senate from 1966 to 1968, sitting in the 176th and 177th New York State Legislatures. He was a delegate to the 1968 and 1972 Republican National Conventions.

He was elected as a Republican to the 91st, 92nd, 93rd and 94th United States Congresses, holding office from January 3, 1969, to January 20, 1976, when he resigned to become the president of the Associated Industries trade group in Albany, New York.^[1]

Later in 1976, Hastings was indicted for taking kickbacks from three employees while he was a legislator, and using the money to purchase vehicles, snowmobiles, and boats as well as contributing to his children's college tuition and a New York state retirement fund.^[2] He was convicted of mail fraud and filing false payroll information in December 1976 and served 14 months in the United States Penitentiary, Allenwood.^[3]

Later life[edit]

After his release from prison, Hastings lived in retirement in Belleair Beach, Florida until returning to Allegany in 1998.

Death[edit]

He died on October 24, 2014, in Allegany, New York.^[4]

Sources[edit]

United States Congress. "James F. Hastings (id: H000327)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

References[edit]

^ "Accent on the News," Milwaukee Journal, Jan. 8, 1976
^ "Former NY Congressman Convicted by Jury, The Bryan Times, Dec. 18, 1976.
^ "U.S. is Suing Legislator to Get $50,000 Returned," New York Times, Mar. 27, 1977
^ Former Representative James F. Hastings remembered as a good public servant in the Olean Times Herald on October 28, 2014

[1] "Accent on the News," Milwaukee Journal, Jan. 8, 1976

[2] "Former NY Congressman Convicted by Jury, The Bryan Times, Dec. 18, 1976.

[3] "U.S. is Suing Legislator to Get $50,000 Returned," New York Times, Mar. 27, 1977

[4] Former Representative James F. Hastings remembered as a good public servant in the Olean Times Herald on October 28, 2014

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