Illinois Governor. A World War II veteran, he served as a US Army tank commander, earning a Purple Heart and two Battle Stars. After the war, he graduated from Yale University in 1947 and from the Chicago Kent College of Law, in 1949. He was an Assistant US Attorney (1954-55), Special Assistant to the Attorney General of the United States (1958-61), Illinois Cook County Sheriff (1963-67) and President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, (1967-69). In 1969, he was elected the 35th Governor of Illinois and served until 1973. During his term as Governor, he was best remembered for pushing the state's first income tax through the legislature in a bid to save a financially strapped Illinois. After his Governorship, he served as a trustee which oversaw the sale and reorganization into the Wisconsin Central Railroad and was the publisher of Chicago Daley Times newspaper. He died of a heart attack at age 65.
Illinois Governor. A World War II veteran, he served as a US Army tank commander, earning a Purple Heart and two Battle Stars. After the war, he graduated from Yale University in 1947 and from the Chicago Kent College of Law, in 1949. He was an Assistant US Attorney (1954-55), Special Assistant to the Attorney General of the United States (1958-61), Illinois Cook County Sheriff (1963-67) and President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, (1967-69). In 1969, he was elected the 35th Governor of Illinois and served until 1973. During his term as Governor, he was best remembered for pushing the state's first income tax through the legislature in a bid to save a financially strapped Illinois. After his Governorship, he served as a trustee which oversaw the sale and reorganization into the Wisconsin Central Railroad and was the publisher of Chicago Daley Times newspaper. He died of a heart attack at age 65.
Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith
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