Washington Hesing

Washington Hesing (1849-1897) was an American newspaper editor and political figure primarily known for his ownership of the Illinois Staats-Zeitung and his term as postmaster of Chicago during the second term of President Grover Cleveland.

Hesing, c. 1880

Washington Hesing
Postmaster of Chicago
In office
1893–1897
Appointed byGrover Cleveland
Preceded byJames A. Sexton
Succeeded byCharles U. Gordon
Personal details
Born(1849-05-04)May 4, 1849
Cincinnati, Ohio
DiedDecember 17, 1897(1897-12-17) (aged 48)
Chicago, Illinois
Resting placeSaint Boniface Cemetery, Chicago
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican (1871-1880)
Democratic (1880-1897)
SpouseHenrietta C. Weir
Alma materYale University
ProfessionNewspaper publisher
Signature

Biography

Hesing was the son of newspaper publisher and former Sheriff of Cook County, Anton C. Hesing. He graduated from Yale University and later studied at the University of Berlin in his father's native Germany.

At the age of 22, he was appointed to the Chicago Board of Education. After his term on the board, he declined an offer from Mayor Joseph Medill to be nomination for a second term. While initially an active Republican, like his father, and a campaigner for President Grant, Hesing left the Republican Party and joined the Democratic Party in 1880. After completing his brief stint on the Chicago Board of Education, Hessing became a full time editorial manager of the Staats-Zeitung, working under both his own father as well as editor-in-chief Hermann Raster.[1]

Hesing unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for mayor in 1893 and 1895. In 1897, Hessing ran for mayor as an independent candidate.

After his unsuccessful campaign in the regularly-scheduled mayoral election of 1893, Hessing was appointed postmaster of Chicago by President Grover Cleveland in 1893.[2] His appointment had been secured by John Patrick Hopkins. Hopkins was a candidate at the time in the 1893 Chicago mayoral special election, which was held due to the death in office by assassination of Mayor Carter Harrison Sr., who had been the winner of the regularly-scheduled mayoral election held earlier that year. Hopkins pointed to his ability to secure Hessing this appointment as a demonstration of his own sway with the Cleveland administration. In his successful special election campaign, Hopkins touted his connections with Cleveland as something that would benefit the city if he were elected mayor.[3] Hessing left his position as postmaster in the Spring of 1897 to again campaign for the mayoralty.[2]

Hessing died in December 1897 of heart disease.[2]

See also

References

  1. Andreas, A.T. (1886). History of Chicago From the Earliest Period to the Present Time In Three Volumes. Vol. III: From the Fire of 1871 Until 1885. Chicago: A.T. Andreas Company. p. 704. Retrieved November 3, 2021 via Google Books.
  2. "Washington Hesing: Stricken Suddenly With Heart Disease". Los Angeles Herald. Chicago. December 19, 1897. p. 7. Retrieved October 31, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  3. Morton, Richard Allen (June 29, 2016). "Roger C. Sullivan and the Making of the Chicago Democratic Machine, 1881-1908". McFarland. pp. 49–53. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.