Born at Cook County Hospital, the son of a Methodist
minister, Harold Washington attended Chicago public schools, earned
a Bachelor of Arts from Roosevelt University in 1949, and a JD from
the Northwestern University Law School in 1952. When his father
died in 1954, Washington took over his position as precinct captain.
He served Chicago as Assistant Corporate Counsel before being elected
as Illinois State Representative, State Senator and United States
Representative. As a reform Democrat, Washington upset the Chicago
Democratic Party machine when he was elected mayor on April 12,
1983 and re-elected in 1987. He died suddenly of a heart attack
on November 24, 1987.
