Anna M. Rosenberg

Anna Marie Rosenberg (née Lederer; July 19, 1901 – May 9, 1983), later Anna Rosenberg Hoffman, was an American public official and businesswoman.[1]

Anna M. Rosenberg
Rosenberg in 1951
Born
Anna Marie Lederer

(1901-07-19)July 19, 1901
Budapest, Hungary
DiedMay 9, 1983(1983-05-09) (aged 81)
New York City, New York, U.S.
OccupationGovernment official, political consultant
Spouse(s)
Julius Rosenberg
​
​
(m. 1919; div. 1962)​

​
​
(m. 1962; died 1974)​

Background

Anna Lederer was born on July 19, 1901, in Budapest, Hungary, the child of Albert Lederer and Charlotte (née Bacskai) Lederer.[2] She had at least one sibling, a sister Clare Lederer von Arnold. In 1912, she immigrated with her family to the United States.[2] She attended Wadleigh High School for Girls.[1]

Career

In 1934, Nathan Straus, New York State regional director for the National Industrial Recovery Act, made her his assistant. In 1936, Rosenberg succeeded him as regional director.

In 1937, she became New York State regional director of the Social Security Board and continued serving through 1943.

From 1941 to 1942, Rosenberg served in the Office of Defense Health and Welfare Services.

From 1942 to 1945, Rosenberg served as New York State regional director of the War Manpower Commission. Concurrently, she served as a consultant to the Retraining and Reemployment Administration. In 1944, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent Rosenberg to Europe to report on the needs of American soldiers after their demobilization, she recommended education and supported the G.I. Bill of Rights.[1]

Additionally, during this time, she shared a close friendship with the president, and sometimes "smuggled food in to him", which they would eat in his office.[3]

In late 1950, Rosenberg was nominated for Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Personnel. Joseph McCarthy and his staff launched an all-out campaign to oppose her nomination due to alleged connections to the Communist Party, but she was recommended by the Senate Armed Services Committee. In spite of opposition, on November 15, 1950 she was named Assistant Secretary of Defense, a post she held until January 1953.

Anna M. Rosenberg being sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Defense

When Rosenberg was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Defense, she was the highest-ranking woman in the Department of Defense. She was to coordinate the Department's staffing, which was divided among many agencies.[4] Also while in the position, Rosenberg worked to implement the National Security Act, promoted racial integration of the services, and supported legislation that safeguarded the rights of minorities in the military.[5]

In 1955, New York City Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. selected her to serve on the New York City Board of Hospitals. Rosenberg also served on Governor of New York W. Averell Harriman's Business Advisory Council and co-chaired the National Hearth Committee. In 1959, she chaired a three-member panel to mediate between the New York City Transit Authority and two unions.

In the early 1960s, she served on the New York City Board of Education among other bodies.[1]

Private sector

In 1945, Rosenberg founded a consulting business, Anna M. Rosenberg Associates. The firm's customers included the American Cancer Society, the American Hospital Association, the American College of Hospital Administrators, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., and Merriam-Webster. She continued to work at the firm until the day of her death.[1]

Personal life and death

In 1919, Lederer became a naturalized U.S. citizen. She married Julius Rosenberg and had a son, Thomas. She worked with various foundations, including the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation and the John Hay Whitney Foundation. In 1962, the Rosenbergs divorced and Lederer married Paul G. Hoffman, the first administrator of the Marshall Plan and a top United Nations official. She died at the age of 81 on May 9, 1983 in Manhattan. Rosenberg had been suffering from cancer since 1982.[1]

Rosenberg with Mayor Robert Wagner Jr., President Kennedy, and Arthur Krim, 1962

Awards

References
  1. Pace, Eric (10 May 1983). "Anna Rosenberg Hoffman Dead; Consultant and 50's Defense Aide". New York Times. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  2. "Anna Rosenberg | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  3. McCullough, David G. (1992). Truman. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-45654-7. OCLC 25411163.
  4. "Anna M. Rosenberg". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  5. "Anna Lederer Rosenberg Hoffman (1902 -1983)". www2.gwu.edu. Retrieved 2019-10-23.

External sources

Anna M. Rosenberg's FBI files obtained through the FOIA and hosted at the Internet Archive

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