Early life James T. Molloy was born in
South Buffalo, Buffalo, New York in 1936 to Matthew Molloy and Catherine Hayden Molloy. Educated in
Buffalo, New York in Catholic schools, he worked in the grain elevators of Buffalo's waterfront and fought fires as a member of the city fire department. He worked his own way through
Canisius College, becoming a member of the
AFL–CIO, the
International Brotherhood of Longshoremen, and the
International Association of Fire Fighters.
Career Molloy worked as a schoolteacher in the
New York cities of
Buffalo and
Lackawanna, and at the age of 27, became the youngest
Democrat to serve as Party Zone Chairman in the State of New York. He went to
Washington, D.C. in 1968 at the invitation of New York Congressman
John Rooney to work in the House Finance Office. During his years of work in that office, he oversaw the growth of legislative appropriations for the House from $75 million to $126 million. He was elected Doorkeeper of the House in 1974, and remained at that post through the 103rd Congress, serving as a primary aide to Speakers
Carl Albert,
Tip O'Neill,
Jim Wright, and
Tom Foley. He was the last of 30 people to hold the position of Doorkeeper from its establishment in 1789 to its elimination in 1994. In this capacity, he introduced Presidents and heads of state to Congress, and coordinated 71 joint sessions and many other events within the House chamber. :: ==Legacy==