Frederick Lundin (born Fredrik Lundin Larsson; May 18, 1868 – August 20, 1947) was a

U.S. Representative 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

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and a Republican Party ward

boss Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He played an instrumental role in the successful mayoral elections of

William Hale Thompson William Hale Thompson (May 14, 1869 – March 19, 1944) was an American politician who served as mayor of Chicago from 1915 to 1923 and again from 1927 to 1931. Known as "Big Bill",Paul Reynolds (BBC journalist), Reynolds, Paul (November 29, 200 ...

and the creation of Thompson's patronage system. He also built up the organized syndicate later taken over by

Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone ( ; ; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American organized crime, gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-foun ...

in 1922.

Background

Frederick Lundin was born Fredrik Lundin Larsson in the parish of Västra Tollstad, Hästholmen,

Ödeshög Municipality Ödeshög Municipality () is a Municipalities of Sweden, municipality in Östergötland County, Sweden. The seat is situated in the small town of Ödeshög. The coat of arms was created in 1972 at the time the modern municipalities of Sweden were ...

Östergötland County Östergötland County () is a county or '' län'' in southeastern Sweden. It has land borders with the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Örebro to the northwest, and Södermanland to the northeast. It also has a ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. His parents were Lars Fredrik Lundin and Fredrika Larsdotter. He had two sisters, Lovisa (1854–1873) and Elin. He immigrated with his parents and sister when he was a child to the United States and settled in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, in 1880. After completing his academic studies, he served as president of Lundin & Co. manufacturer of Lundin's Juniper Ade, which was made from

Juniper berry A juniper berry is the female seed cone produced by the various species of junipers. It is not a true berry but a cone with unusually fleshy and merged scales called a galbulus, which gives it a berry-like appearance. The cones from a handful of ...

extract.

Career

Lundin served as a member of the

Illinois State Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under th ...

from 1894 to 1898. He was later selected to serve as an alternate delegate to the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

from Illinois in 1904. In 1908 Lundin was elected as a Republican

Congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

to the

61st United States Congress The 61st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1909, ...

from Illinois' 7th congressional district in

Near North Side, Chicago The Near North Side is one of Chicago's 77 community areas. It is the northernmost of the three areas that constitute central Chicago, the others being the Loop and the Near South Side. The community area is located north and east of the Chi ...

. He was a one-term congressman from March 4, 1909, until March 3, 1911, and was defeated for reelection in 1910. He resumed manufacturing interests and became involved as a Republican party ward boss in Chicago.

Richard Norton Smith Richard Norton Smith (born October 2, 1953) is an American historian and author, specializing in United States presidents and other political figures. In the past, he worked as a freelance writer for ''The Washington Post'', and worked with U. ...

describes Lundin as: In exchange for his supporters voting as he told them, Lundin arranged jobs mainly in the municipal sector. Lundin was instrumental in the election of

as mayor in 1915 and succeeded in getting Thompson to appoint over 30,000 supporters to the city payroll in a form of political graft as all were required to kick back part of their pay to Lundin's organization. In 1922, Lundin was indicted on a charge of embezzling tax money. Although he was acquitted, this was the beginning of the end of his career as a political boss. Lundin died in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

, on August 20, 1947, and was interred in

Forest Home Cemetery Forest Home Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery and arboretum located in the Lincoln Village, City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Lincoln Village neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and is the final resting place of many of the city's famed bee ...

, Forest Park, Illinois.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lundin, Frederick 1868 births 1947 deaths People from Ödeshög Municipality Businesspeople from Chicago Politicians from Chicago Burials at Forest Home Cemetery, Chicago Swedish emigrants to the United States Republican Party Illinois state senators Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly

Background

Career

See also

Bibliography

References