John G. Fary
Encyclopedia
John G. Fary was a U.S. Representative
from Illinois
. He represented the Illinois's 5th congressional district
Born in Chicago, Illinois
, Fary attended Saint Peter and Paul grammar school and graduated from Holy Trinity High School. His father was a tavern owner. He grew up in the "Back of the Yards"/McKinley Park neighborhood of Chicago's Southside. He attended Loyola University Chicago
, Real Estate School of Illinois and Mid-West Institute. He served as member of Illinois general assembly from 1955 to 1975. In the legislature, he sponsored and co-sponsored bills to assist tavern owners and senior citizens and once sponsored a bill to raise the speed limit on Illinois highways to 80 miles an hour. The accomplishment he was most well known for was to relegalize the playing of Bingo for charitable purposes in the state of Illinois in 1971. This game had been outlawed as form of illegal gambling. Church and veterans' organizations had used the game as a source of revenue. His partner in this campaign was Republican W.J. "Bingo Bill" Murphy.
He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, LaSalle General Assembly, Moose, Eagles, Kiwanis, Lions, Polish National Alliance, Polish Roman Catholic Union and Chamber of Commerce. His hobbies were fishing, hunting and golfing. He lived above a tavern he and his wife owned at 36th Street and Damen Avenue in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. He briefly marketed a brand of whiskey called "Bingo Bourbon" to commemorate the passage of the Bingo law. He was one of the organizers of "The Donkey Saurkraut Club". He was also an insurance and real estate broker. He would entertain children by making bunny rabbits out of a handkerchief and a could make a variety of bird calls from a blade of grass.
Fary was elected as a Democrat
to the Ninety-fourth
Congress by special election, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of U.S. Representative
John Kluczynski and reelected to the three succeeding Congresses (July 8, 1975-January 3, 1983). He served on the Aviation Subcommittee and was instrumental in rebuilding Midway Airport. He was one of several congressmen who pursued federal funding for a flood control plan for the South Side called the Little Calumet Watershed Plan, which Congress eventually approved. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the Ninety-eighth
Congress in 1982. He was named 1978 National Citizen of the year by a Polish newspaper in Buffalo, NY. In 1982, a railway bridge on 67th and Cicero in the Southside of Chicago was named in his honor. He died in Chicago, Illinois
, June 7, 1984 at Rush Presbyterian St Luke's Hospital. He was interred at Resurrection Cemetery, Justice, Illinois
. The funeral procession of nearly 100 cars was escorted to the church by Chicago police. Seven Roman Catholic priests, led by Bishop Alfred Abramowicz, auxiliary bishop of Chicago and pastor of Five Holy Martyrs Church celebrated the requiem mass accompanied by the bishop's choir and violinists from the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. 250 mourners were in attendance.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. He represented the Illinois's 5th congressional district
Illinois's 5th congressional district
The 5th Congressional District of Illinois was created as part of the 28th United States Congress, which first met on March 4, 1843; it was initially represented by Stephen A. Douglas, whose Kansas-Nebraska Act prompted the creation of the Republican Party...
Born in Chicago, Illinois
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Fary attended Saint Peter and Paul grammar school and graduated from Holy Trinity High School. His father was a tavern owner. He grew up in the "Back of the Yards"/McKinley Park neighborhood of Chicago's Southside. He attended Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...
, Real Estate School of Illinois and Mid-West Institute. He served as member of Illinois general assembly from 1955 to 1975. In the legislature, he sponsored and co-sponsored bills to assist tavern owners and senior citizens and once sponsored a bill to raise the speed limit on Illinois highways to 80 miles an hour. The accomplishment he was most well known for was to relegalize the playing of Bingo for charitable purposes in the state of Illinois in 1971. This game had been outlawed as form of illegal gambling. Church and veterans' organizations had used the game as a source of revenue. His partner in this campaign was Republican W.J. "Bingo Bill" Murphy.
He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, LaSalle General Assembly, Moose, Eagles, Kiwanis, Lions, Polish National Alliance, Polish Roman Catholic Union and Chamber of Commerce. His hobbies were fishing, hunting and golfing. He lived above a tavern he and his wife owned at 36th Street and Damen Avenue in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. He briefly marketed a brand of whiskey called "Bingo Bourbon" to commemorate the passage of the Bingo law. He was one of the organizers of "The Donkey Saurkraut Club". He was also an insurance and real estate broker. He would entertain children by making bunny rabbits out of a handkerchief and a could make a variety of bird calls from a blade of grass.
Fary was elected as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
to the Ninety-fourth
94th United States Congress
The Ninety-fourth 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, DC from January 3, 1975 to January 3, 1977, during the administration...
Congress by special election, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
John Kluczynski and reelected to the three succeeding Congresses (July 8, 1975-January 3, 1983). He served on the Aviation Subcommittee and was instrumental in rebuilding Midway Airport. He was one of several congressmen who pursued federal funding for a flood control plan for the South Side called the Little Calumet Watershed Plan, which Congress eventually approved. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the Ninety-eighth
98th United States Congress
The Ninety-eighth 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, DC from January 3, 1983 to January 3, 1985, during the third and...
Congress in 1982. He was named 1978 National Citizen of the year by a Polish newspaper in Buffalo, NY. In 1982, a railway bridge on 67th and Cicero in the Southside of Chicago was named in his honor. He died in Chicago, Illinois
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, June 7, 1984 at Rush Presbyterian St Luke's Hospital. He was interred at Resurrection Cemetery, Justice, Illinois
Justice, Illinois
Justice is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States established in 1911. The population was 12,850 as of 2006.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water.A major road running through the town is...
. The funeral procession of nearly 100 cars was escorted to the church by Chicago police. Seven Roman Catholic priests, led by Bishop Alfred Abramowicz, auxiliary bishop of Chicago and pastor of Five Holy Martyrs Church celebrated the requiem mass accompanied by the bishop's choir and violinists from the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. 250 mourners were in attendance.