Salvatore Albert Cotillo (November 19, 1886 – July 27, 1939) was an Italian-born New York lawyer, Democratic Party politician and judge. Elected in 1912, he was the first Italian-American to serve in both houses of the New York State Legislature and the first who served as Justice of the New York State Supreme Court. Nominated to the court in the First District, he sat on the bench from 1924 until his death in 1939.

Cotillo was a strong proponent of social and pro-labor legislation. He defended ethnic Italians against the stereotyping by Americans not of Italian descent, but also urged the need for Americanization of the Italian community. As such, he stood between the mores of the Italian ethnic ghetto in East Harlem where he grew up, and the judgment and norms of American society where he made his career.

From Naples to New York Born in Naples, Italy,Cottilo, Italy During the World War, p. 28Henderson, Immigrant Politician: Salvatore Cotillo he came to the United States in 1895 with his parents at the age of nine.Ferber, A New American, p. 1 His father Francesco Cotillo, had been a caterer in Naples. The family originally came from Avellino (Montella), in the hinterland of Naples.Ferber, A New American, p. 71 The family settled in East Harlem in East 113th Street among the increasing numbers of Italian immigrants. His father took up catering again and opened a popular pastry and confectionery shop.Gill, Harlem, p. 204 He has been credited with introducing the Italian ice cream spumoni into the United States.Justice Cotillo's Father Dies, The New York Times, November 7, 1938

The oldest of four children, the young Salvatore did not speak English and went to Public School 83 and later to DeWitt Clinton High School and Manhattan College. During those formative years he worked in the family's pastry shop, where intellectuals of the neighborhood gathered in the evening to discuss social and political issues with his father. Those debates gave birth to Cotillo's early social consciousness that formed the basis of his adult devotion to social reform legislation. The young Cotillo was passionate about baseball and became a New York Giants fan. In return for free tickets he used to clean the stadium seats.Ferber, A New American, p. 7

In 1911 he completed a law degree from Fordham UniversityForty-Eight Law Graduates, The New York Times, June 11, 1911Constantine N. Katsoris, A Tribute to the Fordham Judiciary: A Century of Service, Fordham Law Review, Volume 75, Issue 5, 2007 and was admitted to the New York State bar in 1912.Admissions To The Bar, The New York Times, May 9, 1912Justice Cotillo Dead Here at 53, The New York Times, July 28, 1939 At the time Cotillo was the only Italian-American lawyer in the neighbourhood and was practicing in the street in front of his father's gelato and pastry shop on East 116th Street. Most of his clients could not read or write in either Italian or English. "Neighbors and friends sought his aid in the preparation of applications for various licenses, or petitions on behalf of their relatives who wished to emigrate to the United States. Cotillo served an apprenticeship in human problems," according to his biographer.Ferber, A New American, p. 19Shaffer & Shaffer, Lawyers as Assimilators and Preservers.

As a young attorney Cotillo had to distance himself from the local underworld that incorporated many members of the Camorra from Naples who tried to impose their "services". When the so-called King of Little Italy, the Camorra boss Giosue Gallucci, was arrested for carrying concealed weapons, Cotillo was asked to testify as a character witness on his behalf, but refused. Cotillo felt that Gallucci looked at others as if they "were either hirelings or payers of tribute." According to Cotillo "it was a matter of concern in the neighborhood if you were looked down upon by Gallucci."Ferber, A New American, p. 20 Despite the temptation of attractive fees, he refused to help men of Gallucci's disposition to secure gun permits.

Early political career

Cotillo's early law practice included a lot of uncompensated charity for the neighborhood. Cotillo was more than just a lawyer; he advised and represented his clients as they had to deal with society outside the Italian neighbourhood. "Many problems were personal; but some had a community aspect and Cotillo was exhilarated by the challenge they offered to find a solution .... An earnest group of the more frequent callers regarded him as their leader in planning for the realization of a better life for their immigrant neighbors," according to his biographer.Ferber, A New American, p. 21 Cotillo's activities in the courts made him aware of the misfortunes in his community. Italian-Americans were told they must pay illicit tribute to get permits, even if only for push-carts, bootblacks and newsstands. Others seeking employment in the municipal street-cleaning department were asked to pay weeks and months of their earnings when appointed. This racket system, whose exploiters mostly came from among their own, took advantage of the fears and ignorance of the poor.Ferber, A New American, p. 26-7

Apart from a genuine social compassion, Cotillo was also building political alliances that would make it possible for him to use the Italian-American voter power as his Irish-American forerunners in New York were using the power of other immigrant groups. With his father, Cotillo was among the co-founders of a political club called the Tomahawk Democratic Club that took on the Tammany Hall political machine supporting Nicholas J. Hayes, putting forward Henry H. Lazarus as his opponent. The fight was ruthless, with both sides harassing the other's speakers. Lazarus got beaten in the electoral contest, but Cotillo, supported by the Italian-American vote, made a deal with Hayes that gave Little Italy a political foothold in the city.Leadership Fights In Many Districts, The New York Times, September 10, 1911Nicholas Hayes Dies Suddenly, The New York Sun, January 3, 1928 "I want to help my people," he said explaining his switch, "and can do so only with the backing of those in power."Ferber, A New American, p. 28

In 1913, at the age of 27, he became the first Italian-born assemblyman. When Cotillo arrived in the New York State Assembly in Albany that year, the powerful ethnic Irish State Senator "Big Tim" Sullivan observed: "Mark my words, it is the beginning of the Italian era in politics. Watch them."

Cottilo would be elected to office from Italian East Harlem between 1912 and 1922. Raised in the ghetto, he was chosen by the largely Italian neighborhood and continued to depend upon their political support throughout his political career. He was a member of the New York State Assembly (New York Co., 28th District) in 1913, 1915 and 1916. He drew support from the Citizens Union and was identified for two notable pieces of legislation; pensions for widows and the Workmen's Compensations Law. He advocated for women's suffrage, gun control, the end of the death penalty and school lunch programs.

New York senator

He was a member of the New York State Senate from 1917 to 1923. He served the 20th District in the 140th and 141st New York State Legislature and represented the 18th District in the 142nd, 143rd, 144th, 145th and 146th New York State Legislatures. In March 1918, Cotillo opposed the proposed prohibition of alcohol in the state. Although he believed in temperance, he doubted if that would be achieved by prohibition; he advocated education and not infringing on civil liberties.Will Oppose Amendment, The New York Times, March 18, 1918

In May 1918, he was sent to Italy by President Woodrow Wilson to make a study of the economic conditions of that country during World War I in order to provide information for economic relief programs and encourage the Italians to continue the war effort after the disastrous defeat at Caporetto.Government Picks Cotillo; State Senator to Go to Italy to Study Economic Conditions, The New York Times, May 18, 1918Merriam, Charles (1919). American Publicity in Italy, The American Political Science Review, Vol. XIII No. 4, November 1919, pp. 541–55 As a representative of the Committee on Public Information, he spent most of the year in Italy and won the praise of President Wilson. He also received the decoration of Grand Officer of the Italian Crown from King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.

From mid-June to the end of September 1918 Cotillo traveled around Italy, meeting officials and politicians, giving interviews to the press and addressing large crowds. His efforts in Italy were reported by the press and Italian language newspapers at home in the U.S.. When he returned to New York, Cotillo had risen from a largely unknown local politician to achieve public stature and become a leader of the Italian community. Based on this experience he wrote the book "Italy During the World War", published in 1922.Salvatore A. Cottilo (1922), Italy During the World War, Boston: The Christopher publishing house

Social reforms Back from Italy and in the New York State Senate, he fought hard for the regulation of informal immigrant banks and banking agents that handled money transfers abroad, an issue of significant importance to his Italian constituency who were often swindled from their remittances to their families in Italy.Ferber, A New American, pp. 122–128 Cotillo demanded legislation to supervise immigrant banks and to safeguard customers' deposits. His 1921 banking reform bill, which placed express companies and steamship agencies that transferred money abroad under the supervision of the New York State Banking Department, annoyed powerful interests of such companies as Wells Fargo and the Cunard Lines.Jared N. Day, Credit, capital and community: informal banking in turn-of-the-century immigrant communities in the United States, 1880–1924, Financial History Review, 2002, vol. 9, issue 1, pages 65–78

He received death threats and offers of bribes to drop the legislation he had introduced in the Senate.Cotillo Tells Of Bribe And Threats, The New York Times, March 31, 1921 Cotillo's legislation appeared to be disregarded until Republican Governor Nathan L. Miller proposed several compromises. As a result, four bills that regulated the sector were signed into law on May 1, 1921. With the return of progressive Democrat Al Smith to the Governor's office in 1923, Cotillo introduced new bills to reduce the weaknesses of the 1921 concessions. During the hearings on Cotillo's bill in March 1923, a devastating crash of the Tisbo Brothers immigrant bank at 121 Mott Street in lower Manhattan left 2,000 angry depositors, demanding their money they had deposited, with losses of more than two million dollars.Fake Bankers With $2,000,000 Vanish; Depositors In A Riot ̶̵ Frenzied Italians, Many Fearing Loss of Their All, Shout Threats of Vengeance, The New York Times, March 11, 1923Italy Ready To Co-Operate In Guarding Aliens' Savings; Senator Cotillo Proposes System of Deposits in Italian Government Bank Through Agents Here, The New York Times, September 9, 1923Immigrant Inquiry Gets Quick Results; Tisbo Depositors Lose, The New York Times, November 23, 1923Italy Tries Tisbos on Swindle Charge; Three Brothers Face Court for Mulcting Italian Immigrants as Bankers in New York, The New York Times, April 25, 1929