2348 S Millard Ave
Chicago, IL 60623, USA

Anton Cermak House - National Register of Historic Places

Statement of Significance:

The Anton Cermak House is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion B for its connection to Chicago politics and Mayor Anton Cermak. Anton Cermak, 1873-1933, became president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 1922, Chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party in 1928, and finally the mayor of Chicago in 1931. The nominated house is the only property in Chicago that is closely associated with Cermak and also where he resided during the most important years of his political career. Cermak lived in the house from 1923 until his 1933 assassination. I The Anton Cermak house is being nominated at a local level of significance and its period of significance runs from 1923 to 1933, the span of time that Cermak resided there.

Anton Joseph Cermak was Chicago's first and only foreign-born mayor. His slow and difficult rise up the city's power ladder and his transformation from Bohemian mine boy to statesman make him an unforgettable political figure in Chicago, even the entire country.

Cermak was born in 1873 in a Bohemian village, Kladno, Czechoslovakia, now in the Czech Republic. His family immigrated to America in 1874, finally settling in Chicago around 1900 in the heavily Bohemian west side. It is here in this ethnic enclave that Cermak constructed a political base to support him in various political campaigns over the next three decades.

Anton Cermak dabbled in various business enterprises in his early years after his service in a local mine to support the family, following his father's road. For example, he started his own hauling business at nineteen which gave his future political path a strong foundation in terms of leadership and communication skills. After serving four terms as a state legislator from 1902 to 1909, he was elected alderman Chicago's 12th ward in 1909 and municipal court bailiff in 1912. He returned to his aldermanic position in 1919 following an unsuccessful candidacy for county sheriff and was elected president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 1922.

Before Cermak, the Democratic Party in Cook County was divided along ethnic lines with the Irish being dominant. As Cermak climbed the local political ladder, resentment from the Irish contingent grew. When the political bosses rejected his bid to become the mayoral candidate, Cermak swore revenge. That is when he formed his non-Irish political "army" including black politician William Dawson, who switched from the Republican to the Democratic Party under Cermak's influence. Dawson later became U.S. Representative from the 1st District and the most powerful black politician in the countries Cermak gradually wooed members of Chicago's growing black community into the Democratic fold. Cermak's political and organizational skills helped create one of the most powerful political organizations of his day, and Cermak is considered the father of Chicago's Democratic machine. As Alex Gottfried put it, Cermak was the creator of "the first cohesive city and state-wide Democratic machine in the history of Chicago politics."

It was Cermak, not Richard J. Daley, who first recognized the enormous benefits of implementing the public policy "that good government was good politics-and good politics was good government." Cermak's ultimate political genius rested on his ability to adopt and articulate traditional reform issues and to make them his own while not hurting his political activities. His commitment to political reform was somewhat debatable, since it was used as a political tool to maneuver party allegiance. Cermak told the press, "The period of the backroom is gone. From now on everybody in the organization will have his voice in the management." Cermak demanded that local government become more effective, efficient, and businesslike in serving the public interest. He wanted to show Chicago voters that a political party could run itself and a city like a profitmaking enterprise using political victories as its overall goal.

During the 1920s and 1930s, still nearly two-thirds of Chicago's population were still foreign-born or children of foreign-born residents. The city was demographically ripe for a shrewd politician who could put together a powerful ethnic political mix-Anton Cermak was that man. Upon seizing party control, Cermak reorganized existing Democratic political apparatus into his own image. Multi-ethnicity was the new guiding political principle of Chicago Democrats. The blueprint for assembling the country's last political machine rested on the notion of depersonalizing politics between ethnic groups and individuals while stressing the joys and advantages of organizational unity. Thus, Cermak led his ethnically integrated Chicago and county Democrats to an overwhelming victory in the 1930s election. In 1931, it all came together for Anton Cermak as he swept into city hall, defeating Republican Mayor William Hale "Big Bill" Thompson by almost 200,000 votes. Cermak was successful in capturing working-class and ethnic voters by championing ethnic interests. For example, in order to get more Italian voters' support, who were in the main Republicans before the present Democratic era, Cermak placed persons with Italian names on the ballot and appointing them to patronage positions. This mayoral election helped secure the ascendancy of the Democratic Party, and ended the Republican Party's power in Chicago-no Republican has held the office of mayor of Chicago since Thompson's exit in 1931.

As Mayor, Cermak wanted to control or influence every aspect of city life through either the mayor's office or the Democratic Party. It was partly owing to his willingness to exert himself and partly owing to his refusal to delegate to others any responsibility that he could carry himself that he gained his deserved reputation as a master of detail. He also demonstrated how a party could adopt a businesslike approach to government and elections. Under his direction, the local Democratic party became one of the first, if not the first political organization in the country to use statistical analysis to evaluate political performance and to devise election strategies. Cermak intertwined the governmental and political process during his city hall reign. Individual loyalty to the city, loyalty to the government, loyalty to a community, church, or constituent was fostered and encouraged-as long as it was understood that it all fell under the mantle of Cook County Democratic Central Committee, or "the machine." Although it would take over twenty years to fully implement this incredible philosophy, it was Cermak who first made Chicagoans believe that his Democratic party was the only true and acceptable vehicle for one to practice local politics. viii Cermak also published a local party newspaper, The Public Service Leader. According to the newspaper, the party's executive committee had formulated "a scientific mathematically exact grading of the vote getting machinery in each of Chicago's fifty wards.”

From 1931 to 1933, the economic issues of the Depression dominated Cermak's mayoral term. In his 1931 inaugural address, he said that the major municipal problem of "first importance" was the financial condition of the city: high taxes, the high cost of administration, and the depleted treasury. x Understanding Mayor Cermak's actions regarding Chicago's financial problems is best achieved in the context of the Depression. Chicago, one of the hardest hits of all major cities during this time, had an unemployment number of around 750,000 by October, 1932. In September of that same year, by Cermak's own statement, only fifty-one of the city's 228 banks were still open. Throughout Cermak's term there was a danger that the city might default on its bonds and other obligations. In order to find funds to pay city employees regularly, which was by far the most severe crisis, Cermak scurried from Springfield to Washington D.C. to local bankers, to New York financiers to find money. Cermak drove himself and his associates relentlessly, trying to keep the machinery of government going while modernizing fiscal and administrative practices and drastically reducing municipal expenditures. Many of his activities were outside the normal, legal scope of a mayor's obligations, but Cermak made no attempt to evade responsibility. He tried every known method of solving the financial puzzle, even seeking financial help from federal and state legislatures and private bank owners.

However, his struggle to secure proper fiscal support from the Springfield legislature failed. In addition, his continuing hunt for bank loans was also often unsuccessful. Borrowing money from the state government could not be done. Thus, in 1932, Cermak turned to the federal government and began pursuing Reconstruction Finance Corporation (R.F.C.) loans. Cermak organized an influential lobby group to go to Washington to get the loans. Despite all the effort, the trip was useless since the R.F.C refused to make a loan directly to the city. But this initial setback did not stop him. He went back again and again until he finally managed to receive several loans from the R.F.C. He continued to seek federal aid regularly until his death.

Besides the terrible financial tangles, Cermak confronted many other important problems during his short term as Chicago mayor, among which were primarily public assistance and crime. Although Cook County administered almost the entire welfare program, Cermak could not stay out of the picture. He valued his picture as a humanitarian; welfare program was also a useful political attribute. Wilfred S. Reynolds, a top-ranking administrator in public and private welfare agencies in Chicago from 1910s to 1940s, described Cermak as a "welfare statesman." Indeed, Cermak had been so deeply involved with relief problems that he became a central figure in the city and state of relief problems until his death. His leadership was symbolized by his election in 1931 as honorary chairman of the Joint Emergency Relief Fund of Cook County. Cermak advocated public works not only on the federal level by contacting Washington D.C. to urge federal relief programs, but also on the city level by negotiating with the R.F.C. for a loan in order to build the long-delayed Chicago subway.

At the mean time, Cermak devoted much attention to crime and had considerable success as a police executive. He was determined to clear Chicago's reputation as a city of crimes. He adopted previous mayor William Hale Thompson's tactic and statistics showing that Chicago was no worse than any other city, only more publicized. Cermak tried to portray himself as a true leader of the anti-crime crusade in the Chicago area by using whatever methods and devices available. According to the head of a private Chicago crime-fighting agency, the Secret Six, there has been a marked improvement of the crime condition in the city since Anton J. Cermak became mayor and James P. Allman commissioner of police.

While attending a political affair with president-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt in Florida on February 15, 1933, Cermak's life came to a sad and sudden end. A bullet intended for Roosevelt hit Cermak and led to his untimely death. He struggled for eighteen days but finally died on March 6, 1933. "I'm glad it was me instead of you" were his famous words to Roosevelt before his tragic diathetic "The late Mayor Cermak was a man of great executive ability, an authority on municipal government, and uncompromising fighter for the people, or the downtrodden or the depressed" was a tribute in the Chicago Daily Tribune Cermak was buried in Chicago's Bohemian National Cemetery. Just a few days after Cermak's death, the City Council adopted the resolution of Alderman John Toman from 23rct ward to change the name of 22nct Street to Cermak Road in memory of the late mayor. xvi It is worthy of note here that South Millard Avenue is only two blocks away from Cermak Road.

His house on Millard Avenue where he lived until his death, received more attention than ever before. For the funeral, in accord with Mayor Cermak's three daughters, the guard of honor preceding them in the parade was composed of members of the Sokol Union-a Bohemian athletic society to which their father belonged for many years. xvii Forming an honorary escort, members of the city council and the mayor's cabinet marched behind the hearse to the Cermak Horne. "Having taken the mayor to his own doorstep, his political and official associates will withdraw and the body will be left for twenty hours to those who mourn him most, his brothers, sisters, daughters, and their children.

On March 9, hundreds of people waited in line at the Cermak Horne to view the body of the slain mayor. A line formed outside Cermak residence after body had arrived from Miami. The public was allowed to view the body during the afternoon and night. Many in the line were neighbors of the mayor. Residents of the neighborhood, realizing that those in line were cold and sometimes hungry, voluntarily carried out pots of coffee and plates of sandwiches. This, they explained, was their way of showing respect to the memory of the mayor. xix in the neighborhood of the Horne, where, in the bay window of the modest parlor, the body was placed for the day and night. Crowds struggled outside to get a glimpse of the coffin or family. Police, their voices softening, kept them moving."

At the time the coffin containing the body of Mayor Cermak reached his home, a mass was being said for him in the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, a short distance away. The Rev. John Weaver, pastor, said the mayor had been a consistent supporter of all the churches in the neighborhood. From the time the doors of the Cermak home at 2348 South Millard Avenue were opened at 2:30p .m., until late in the evening, visitors passed the bier of the mayor at the rate of 3,500 an hour. The line was constantly augmented by new arrivals. At 10:45 p.m. the lines of passing mourners halted while the Polish Singers' Alliance, a chorus of eighty, sang hymns in the house. At the same time a Bohemian chorus of sixty sang outside the home.

Anton Cermak and South Lawndale
Millard Avenue, the location of the Anton Cermak House, is in what is now the Mexican community of Little Village. Little Village, or Pueblo Pequeno, was originally known as South Lawndale, but was re-named in the mid-1970s by its Mexican-American majority. Both Lawndales (North Lawndale and South Lawndale) were originally located in what had been open swamplands west of the city limits, beyond Western Avenue. When rail service southwest from the city commenced in 1862, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad became the boundary between the two areas. Annexed by Chicago in 1869, South Lawndale experienced rapid residential development in the 1880s as part of the general westward expansion of the city, but this development was contained on the south and west by accelerating industrial development. Immigrants from Bohemian Pilsen were among the first occupants of the area's small brick houses, followed in the 1930s by Poles and, since the 1960s, by Hispanics. By 1980, the community has the city's largest concentration of Mexicans.

Wedged between the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad on the north and Belt Railroad of Chicago on the west, South Lawndale was referred to as "a residential island in a sea of industry" by historian Harold Mayer. =iii the 1890s witnessed the mass construction of many single-family residences, plus an increasing number of two- and three-flat buildings and commercial/residential structures, a number of which were built along West Cermak Road between 1908 and 1912. In comparison with the previous decades, little residential construction took place in South Lawndale after 1920. iv More than half of current residential units are in structures built before 1940.

In spite of the low rents and the relatively low economic status of the residents, the working class community was far from being a slum or blighted area. In 1940s,
Ninety-seven per cent of the dwelling units are in structures which are in good condition or needing only minor repairs. Most of the residential structures are relatively old. This is not evident from their condition, however, as they are generally well-maintained. South Lawndale is noteworthy for the length of occupancy of its dwellings, by the same families and for a high percentage of owner occupancy. The 2 8. 1 per cent of the dwelling units which are occupied by their owners have a median duration of occupancy of fifteen years and two months, while half of the tenant-occupied unites were occupied more than three years and four months.

The long-occupancy trait of the community contributed to South Lawndale's deep and continuing Bohemian roots. It also explains Cermak's lifelong association with the community. In addition, the homes were "exceptionally clean and in good repair." "The district is to be especially commended for its beautiful lawns and gardens which, although as a rule, only back yards are neat and well kept.

The first Bohemian immigrants reached Chicago shortly after the Revolution of 1848. xxviii In 1900, Bohemian immigration replaced earlier Dutch, German, Irish and Scotch in the Lawndale area. A few years later, the area had largest Bohemian settlement outside of Prague. The residents of South Lawndale established many clubs, lodges, and similar organizations, among which benefit societies are the most important ones. The Bohemian ethnic group was politically and socially very active from late 1910s through 1940s. For example, Czechoslovak National Council of America was a non-profit organization founded in 1918 in Chicago, devoted to "promote co-operation of all peoples for the preservation of Democratic freedom.,

Family life and ties in Lawndale were strong. Married children very often continued to live under their parents' roofs. Cermak provides a case in point, having his daughter Helen Cermak and her husband Floyd Kenley live with him at 2348 South Millard Avenue after their marriage.

Cermak, like other successful Chicago mayors, never moved from his community even as his own political and economic fortunes rose. Since moving into Lawndale in 1892, he always acted as a voice for his fellow people, expressing their hopes and concerns on various social and political issues. "Cermak 'made' Chicago Czechs, and Chicago Czechs 'made' Cermak," goes Alex Gottfried's comment on Cermak's lasting prestige among his people.

Benefit societies were among the most important organizations in the 1920s Czech culture in Chicago. Cermak belonged to at least one, perhaps more, of these societies. During the six years of Cermak's first city-wide office from 1912 to 1918, he maintained his complex relationship with the Lawndale Czechs. Although he was very busy downtown, he did not miss the Saturday night events of eska Beseda of the Bohemian Charitable Organization_~ii He was the director of Lawndale national Banck and the president of Lawndale Building and Loan Association since 1907, and was an influential member of several fraternal societies in the 1920s, most of whose headquarters were located in Lawndale. For example, Cermak was the director of 26th Street Business Men's Association, as well as the founder and president of The Bohemian Charitable Organization since 1910.xxxiii The Czechs organized "Sokols," or free thought schools, to fill an educational gap in the immigrant community. The Sokol movement began in Czechoslovakia in 1862 in order to promote physical, spiritual, and mental well-being of the people. xxxiv Cermak was an avid and enthusiastic Sokolite. He was the member of the board of directors of Sokol Chicago, belonged to the American Sokol Gymnastic Union, and frequently and willingly offered his influence and service to the Sokols. He was outspoken in his praise of the "spirit of cooperation and inculcation of ideals of discipline" which the Sokols were supposed to foster.

In his earlier years, Cermak took a very active role in community affairs as the Director of the Czechoslovak-American Chamber of Commerce. He was loved and respected by his Czech-Slavik constituency, the majority of whom supported his anti-Prohibition platform. Anton Cermak also leveraged his political and business shrewdness to help at least one local bank prospering. "He and the Cook County Board had money at Lawndale National Bank and kept it afloat during the hard times. nXXXV The Lawndale National Bank was located at 3333 West 26 Street, now replaced by TCF National Bank. It was during the time of Cermak's political ascendency that 22nd Street between Cicero and Harlem Avenues became known as the "Bohemian Wall Street. , In addition, Cermak came down hard on the gangsters who turned the city streets into shooting galleries. An article in the Cehesko Slovo, a daily newspaper in Czechoslovakia was reprinted on the Daily Svornost in Chicago. It was titled "Poor Cermak", and reads: "The fight started by Chicago's new mayor, Tony Cermak, against the underworld criminal class is in full swing. That this is a battle to the finish is evidenced by the fact that Cermak has a personal bodyguard composed of 100 detectives. It is their civic duty to guard Cermak from the attacks of the underworld habitues.,

Anton Cermak was living with his wife and two daughters at 2532 Trumbull Avenue-also in South Lawndale-from 1910 until May 31, 1923. While serving as President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, he moved to 2348 South Millard Avenue, where he spent the rest of his life. xxxviii Designed by Chicago-Bohemian architects James B. Rezny and Frank A. Randak, the Cermak House obtained its building permit in May, 1912.xxxix Before the Cermak family moved in, the house belonged to a local printer, an editor, and a nurse among others.x1 The mayor's body laid in state at home for one day, March 9, 1933, where thousands paid tribute to the assassinated mayor. Cermak's daughter, Helen Cermak-later to become Mrs. Otto Kerner-always lived in the house and was bequeathed the property in November 1936.