More and more revelations surfaced about the corruption in New York City effecting more than a dozen of the city’s magistrates as Mayor Jimmy Walker left the Big Apple in the early 1930s for a restorative vacation in Palm Springs.
Journalists who followed Walker to Palm Springs reported that he was taking the “sun bath treatment” to recover from an illness. A delegation of local Native Americans met him at the train station outside of the city, and when they offered him a free mud bath at the bathhouse in Palm Springs, he gently replied, “Thank you, no. I’ve been in one for the last 18 months.”
His visit to the home of Samuel Untermeyer, a New York attorney, in Palm Springs included press conferences that were held each morning from the front porch of Untermeyer’s home. It was reported that on some mornings, Mayor Walker would be wearing black and orange pajamas when he addressed the press.
Walker was asked to resign by New York Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt, who then went on to become president.
Bob Hope starred in a 1957 film, Beau James, that depicted Walker's tenure as mayor.
There is a multitude of ways to learn more about Palm Springs, which turned 75 in 2013.
One of the more intriguing methods is by exploring the city’s history.
The Palm Springs Historical Society will share a weekly story whose time and place corresponds with today.
The Palm Springs Historical Society is located at 221 S. Palm Canyon Drive. Visit www.pshistoricalsociety.org for more information.
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