Chicago Mayor Washington: Early Life

Aerial View of Chicago, 69th South Park Ave, 1925. Chicago Aerial Survey, photographers. 1925. The Newberry Library.

Harold Washington was born in Chicago’s South Side on April 15th, 1922, to Roy Lee Washington and Bertha Jones Washington. His parents worked mainly blue-collar jobs, such as stockyard or domestic work, but Washington’s father did become involved in politics—he went on to practice law and became a precinct captain in Chicago’s Third Ward. This no doubt had an impact on his son.

From 1936 to 1939, Washington attended DuSable High School, which was the first high school built in Chicago specifically for Black students. The school offered many opportunities and amenities—it was complete with a botany lab, swimming pool, library, and attentive teachers. However, Washington left after his first three years to join the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1939 and then the army in 1941. While serving in World War II, Washington was able to earn a high school equivalency diploma by taking correspondence courses. Upon returning home in 1945, he continued his education by attending university. 

Auditorium Building. C. William Brubaker, photographer. Circa 1972. University of Illinois Chicago.

Washington studied political science at Roosevelt University (then called Roosevelt College). At the time, it was one of very few integrated universities in the United States. Despite the tensions that must have existed within a school that was 95% white, Washington excelled inside and outside of the classroom and was elected by his peers to serve as class president during his senior year. After graduating from Roosevelt, he went on to study law at Northwestern University. In 1952, he graduated and began practicing alongside his father, who was at this point working as a precinct captain, connecting voters to their representatives.