Gordon Davis: key obituary facts
Is Gordon Davis dead? Yes. Gordon Davis died on October 4, 2026, at age 85.
Cause of death: Gordon Davis's cause of death was reported as Emphysema.
What was Gordon Davis known for?
Gordon Davis was a Lawyer, Civic Leader.
More about Gordon Davis
Born: August 7, 1941.
Gordon Jamison Davis, an American lawyer and civic leader who served as New York City parks commissioner from 1978 to 1983, died October 4, 2026, from complications of emphysema.
He was 85. Born in Chicago, Davis moved to New York after graduating from Harvard Law School in 1967 and became a prominent figure in the city’s public, civic and legal affairs.
Appointed by Mayor Ed Koch as the city’s first parks commissioner under his administration, Davis oversaw the department for five years; he has been described as New York’s most successful parks commissioner since Robert Moses. In 1983, Davis became one of the first African Americans to make partner at a major New York corporate law firm, Lord Day & Lord. His civic roles included founding chairman of Jazz at Lincoln Center and one of the founding trustees of the Central Park Conservancy. He was also a life trustee of the New York Public Library and was among the first class inducted into Lincoln Center’s Performing Arts Hall of Fame. In 2012, Davis joined the New York office of Venable LLP as a partner, continuing a legal career alongside his long involvement in the city’s cultural and civic institutions.