Richard A. Harewood (June 25, 1900 – November 16, 1985) was a lawyer, state legislator, and judge in Illinois.[1]
Richard A. Harewood was born on June 25, 1900, inSaint Lucia in what was then theBritish West Indies.[2] After the death of his parents, he moved toChicago to live with his uncle.[3] He attendedWendell Phillips High School and then enlisted in theUnited States Army. He received an honorable discharge on November 21, 1918. He graduated from theUniversity of Illinois. He was a professor of modern language atTalladega College for a time before returning to Chicago to earn his law degree from theUniversity of Chicago Law School. He graduated law school in 1926.[2] He then served as an assistant state's attorney for Cook County and an assistant corporation counsel for the City of Chicago.[4]
He was elected to theIllinois House of Representatives as one of three members from the 3rd district to the 60th General Assembly. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination for his seat in the 1938 Republican primary.[5] In 1946, he was elected Democratic Central Committeeman fromIllinois's 1st congressional district.[6] During the 1956 general election, incumbent Robert Romano died and Harewood was selected to fill the vacancy on the ballot. He was elected in that year's general election.[7] He served in the 70th General Assembly. In 1958, Harewood became the first African-American slated for statewide office inIllinois when the Cook County Democratic Party slated him to run for the then-elected position of trustee of theUniversity of Illinois.[8] He was elected to that office in the 1958 general election becoming the first African-American to hold statewide office in Illinois.[3] He was later as a Cook County Circuit Judge. He died on November 16, 1985.[3]
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