HJ0111 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0111 LRB100 17651 ALS 32822 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The Illinois General Assembly takes pride in recognizing the accomplishments and contributions of State officials and citizens and would like to honor the lasting legacy of Governor Dwight Herbert Green, the thirty-second governor of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Governor Green was born in Ligonier, Indiana on January 9, 1897; he attended Wabash College from 1915 to 1917, but his education was interrupted with the outbreak of World War I; and

WHEREAS, Governor Green joined the United States Army Air Service and served as a second lieutenant, an army pilot, and a flying instructor; after his military service, he returned to his educational pursuits; he studied at Stanford in 1919 and earned a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1922; and

WHEREAS, Governor Green entered public service after establishing a successful legal career in Chicago, securing an appointment in 1926 as a special attorney with the Bureau of Internal Review; in 1927, he served as a special assistant to the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, where he was also one of the prosecutors in the income tax evasion trial of Al Capone; and

WHEREAS, Governor Green served as Illinois U.S. Attorney from 1932 until 1935; while he was an unsuccessful 1939 Chicago mayoral candidate, he won the 1940 Republican gubernatorial nomination and was sworn into the governor's office on January 13, 1941; and

WHEREAS, At the end of the same year, Pearl Harbor thrust Governor Green into the job of leading one of the largest U.S. state governments during World War II; he won widespread support during the war and was reelected in 1944 to serve a second full term; and

WHEREAS, During his tenure, the Chicago transit system was obtained, the publicly owned-port authority was sanctioned, and veteran programs that focused on rehabilitation, reemployment, and retraining were all advanced; an interracial commission was authorized to look into racism complaints in the employment and housing sectors and legislation was instituted that made the teaching of American history and the ideology of republican government a mandatory requirement in public schools; after running unsuccessfully for a third term, Green left office on January 10, 1949 and retired from politics; and

WHEREAS, Governor Green passed away on February 20, 1958 and was buried at the Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate the Illinois State Armory Building in Springfield, Illinois as the Governor Dwight H. Green State Armory Building; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the office of Central Management Services is requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs giving notice of the name "Governor Dwight H. Green State Armory Building"; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the family of Governor Green, the Department of Central Management Services, the Illinois State Police, and the Illinois Secretary of State.