Thad F. Wasielewski | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's4th district | |
| In office January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1947 | |
| Preceded by | John C. Schafer |
| Succeeded by | John C. Brophy |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 2, 1904 |
| Died | April 25, 1976(1976-04-25) (aged 71) |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan Marquette University Law School |
| Profession | Attorney |
Thaddeus Francis Boleslaw Wasielewski (December 2, 1904 – April 25, 1976) was an American lawyer fromMilwaukee,Wisconsin who spent six years as aDemocraticU.S. Representative fromWisconsin's 4th congressional district.[1]
Thad F. Wasielewski was born in Milwaukee, son of Dr. Frank S. and Felicia H. (Baranowski) Wasielewski. He attended SS. Cyril and Methodius Parochial School andSouth Division High School, and received degrees from theUniversity of Michigan (B.A., 1927) and fromMarquette University Law School (J.D., 1931) and practiced law in Milwaukee. On 28 October 1939, he married Stephanie M. Gorak, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Gorak of Milwaukee. He was active in many localPolish-American organizations and would make campaign speeches both inEnglish and in thePolish language.
In 1938, Wasielewski unseated incumbent CongressmanRaymond Joseph Cannon in the Democraticprimary for Wisconsin's 4th congressional district, but was narrowly defeated in turn by a former incumbent,RepublicanJohn Schafer, with 33,559 votes (31.40%), to Schafer's 34,196 (32.00%),Progressive Paul Gauer's 30,817 (28.84%), 7,498 votes (7.02%) for Cannon (who ran as anindependent) and 794 votes (0.74%) for aUnion Party candidate.
Wasielewski was again nominated in 1940, and this time was elected to the77th Congress. Wasielewski was an interventionist (supported American entry into World War II) in a largely isolationist state. He voted in favor of both the 1941 Lend Lease Act to send more military aid to Great Britain, and the 1944 Lend Lease Act as well.[2][3] He served as part of the 77th,78th and79th Congresses. He lost the Democratic nomination in 1946 toEdmund Bobrowicz (he was accused of voting for anti-labor legislation), then ran unsuccessfully for his seat as anindependent when accusations surfaced that Bobrowicz was aCommunist Party member. As a result, they both lost to RepublicanJohn C. Brophy, who drew 49,144 votes to Bobrowicz' 44,398, Wasielewski's 38.502, andSocialist George Helberg's 2,470.
Wasielewski returned to private life, although he served as a delegate to the1948 Democratic National Convention and would make one more unsuccessful try for the Democratic nomination in 1950, losing 27,717 to 10,692 in an effort to unseat incumbentClement Zablocki. He practiced law until his death in 1976.
His papers are owned by theWisconsin Historical Society, and are housed in theUniversity of Wisconsin–Milwaukee'sGolda Meir Library Archives Department, in the Milwaukee Area Research Center.[4]
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