| William E. King | |
| State Senate: | Illinois |
| District: | 1st |
| Term Start: | 1934 |
| Term End: | 1939 |
| Predecessor: | William Wallace |
| Successor: | William Wallace |
| Birth Date: | May 12, 1885 |
| Birth Place: | Oak Ridge, Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Party: | Republican |
| Spouse: | Blanche Hastings |
| Education: | Howard University |
| Alma Mater: | Philander Smith College, John Marshall School of Law |
| Occupation: | Lawyer, politician |
| Footnotes: | [1] [2] |
William E. King (1885–1967) was an American lawyer and politician in Illinois.[3] [4] [5] He served as a state legislator in the Illinois House of Representatives for eight years, followed by a full term as a state senator. He represented Illinois's 1st House of Representatives district.
He was born in 1885 in Oak Ridge, Morehouse Parish, Louisiana.[3] [1] His parents were Selina and John King.[2] As a child, King attended the Coleman Academy (also Coleman College) in Gibsland, Louisiana.[2]
King earned his undergraduate degree at Philander-Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas.[2] He studied law at Howard University followed by John Marshall School of Law, where he graduated in 1915.[2] [6] His mentor was Oscar Stanton De Priest.
Williams was admitted to the bar in 1916.[1] In June 1919, married Blanche Hastings.[1] [2] The following year, 1920, the couple had a daughter, Blanche[2] As a lawyer, he worked from 1919 until 1923 for the City of Chicago as assistant counsel to their corporation department.[3] [2] He spent two years as the assistant Illinois Attorney General from 1923 until 1925.[3] [2]
A member of the Republican Party,[7] he was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1925.[8] He would serve in the House for eight years representing the 1st district.[3] During his tenure in the House, King led successful efforts to make the Ku Klux Klan illegal in Illinois.[8] [2] He also served on a committee that studied the impact of the Chicago race riot of 1919.[2]
He defeated William A. Wallace for Illinois State Senate in 1934.[7] In the 1938 general election, King lost in a rematch to Wallace with 19,775 votes to Wallace's 20,2721 votes.[9]
After he lost his Senate campaign, he was industrial commissioner for the State of Illinois, followed by two years as an attorney for a waste management district.[3] In 1944, he unsuccessfully ran for United States Congress.[10] He was a delegate for three Republican presidential conventions.
King and Blanche lived on the South Side of Chicago. They raised their niece alongside their daughter, Blanche.[10]
King served as deacon for fifteen years at the Olivet Baptist Church.[10] He was a member of the Elks and the Appomattox Club. He was also a freemason. He served on the board of directors for the Wabash YMCA.[10] In the late 1960s, he remained active in local Republican party activities. He was vice chair of the Cook County Republican Central Commission and a member of the G.O.P. State Central Committee.[1] He practiced law until his death.
King died in October 1967 at his home in Chicago. Jet and The Chicago Tribune published obituaries about him.[1] [11] His funeral was held at Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago.[11]