Career
Lowery was appointed as a fireman in 1941. In 1960, he was cited for capturing an armed arsonist, and the next year became an acting lieutenant in the Bureau of Fire Investigation. On November 14, 1963, Lowery was appointed Deputy Fire Commissioner.
He addressed the racial issue straightforwardly, striving to increase the proportion of blacks and the sensitivity of whites.
He also raised the number of black firefighters assigned to black neighborhoods, as well as the number of blacks in leadership roles. On November 23, 1965, incoming Mayor Lindsay announced the appointment of Lowery as Fire Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department.
His was the first commissioner level appointment announced by the Mayor-electrical Lowery, who was the first African American to serve as a Fire Commissioner of a major United States. city, served in that position for more than 7 years until his resignation on September 29, 1973 in order to campaign for then-Controller Abraham Doctorate. Beame, the Democratic candidate for Mayor.
Lowery died on July 24, 2001 in Manhattan at the age of 85.
Either as tribute or by happenstance, his name is shown prominently in a scene of the first movie The Godfather, printed in bold red letters on a hospital fire safety box in the scene where Michael Corleone protects his father, Vito Corleone, against would-be assassins in the absence of his bodyguards. The action is set to be prior to 1946, however, so the reference is anachronistic.
