About Harold Washington
Harold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who was the 51st mayor of Chicago. In April 1983, Washington became the first African American to be elected as the city's mayor at the age of 60. He served as mayor from April 29, 1983, until his death in 1987. Born in Chicago and raised in the Bronzeville neighborhood, Washington became involved in local 3rd Ward politics under Chicago Alderman and future Congressman Ralph Metcalfe after graduating from Roosevelt University and Northwestern University School of Law. Washington was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 to 1983, representing Illinois's first district. Washington had previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1965 to 1976 and the Illinois State Senate from 1977 to 1980. A 1994 survey of experts on Chicago politics assessed Washington the third-best mayor in the city's history up to that time. After farming for a time, Mack Washington became a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church, serving numerous churches in Illinois until the death of his wife in 1952. At a time when most African Americans and Chicago residents supported the Republican Party, Roy Washington was one of the first black precinct captains for the Chicago Democratic Party; he also worked as a lawyer and Methodist minister.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.