William Joseph Green Jr. (March 5, 1910 – December 21, 1963) was a Democratic member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Biography

William J. Green was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania, the son of Irish immigrants. He graduated from

St. Joseph's Preparatory School St. Joseph's Preparatory School, known as "St. Joe's Prep" or simply "The Prep", is an urban, private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Society of Jesus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The school was founded in 1851 ...

, and attended St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia. He was engaged in business as an insurance broker in Philadelphia in 1937. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a private in the

Quartermaster Corps Following is a list of quartermaster corps, military units, active and defunct, with logistics duties: * Egyptian Army Quartermaster Corps - see Structure of the Egyptian Army * Hellenic Army Quartermaster Corps (''Σώμα Φροντιστών ...

from March 22, 1944, to December 4, 1944. He was elected to Congress in 1944, and after a defeat in the Republican landslide year of 1946, was reelected to Congress in 1948 and every two years thereafter until his death at age 53. He had been elected Democratic City Chairman in 1953, and, in that role, held until his death, he helped solidify

as a Democratic stronghold. Green died of

peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and covering of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One pa ...

and gall bladder complications in Philadelphia on December 21, 1963 and was interred at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in

Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania Cheltenham Township is a home-rule township located in the southeast corner of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It borders Philadelphia to the south and east, Abington Township and Jenkintown to the north, and Springfield Tow ...

. He was succeeded in Congress by his son, William J. Green III, who was 25 years old at the time of his first election, and later became

Mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Cherelle Parker, who is the first woman to hold the ...

. The William J. Green Jr. Federal Building, at 6th and Arch streets in Philadelphia, is named for him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, William J. 1910 births 1963 deaths American people of Irish descent Burials at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery Quartermasters Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Deaths from peritonitis Politicians from Philadelphia United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army soldiers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives

Biography

See also

References