Michael "Hinky Dink" Kenna (1858-1946)
Michael “Hinky Dink” Kenna was Alderman, and then Committeeman, of Chicago’s First Ward from 1897 to 1946. The diminutive Kenna began his career as a newsboy in 1868, and eventually purchased a loop newsstand that became exceedingly successful.
In the late 1800s, Hinky Dink purchased a tavern on Clark Street called The Workingman’s Exchange, where he traded food and alcohol for votes. Kenna was elected Alderman in 1897, when he teamed with fellow First Ward Alderman (each ward had two Aldermen until 1923) “Bathhouse” John Coughlin to create a powerful political machine in what was then called The Levee District, the area just north of 22nd Street along the east bank of the Chicago River.
Hinky Dink and Bathhouse John meted out favors and indulgences in return for power, without any regard for morality or propriety. By the early years of the 20th Century, the Levee had become a haven for brothels and taverns, and the First Ward’s amoral fiefdom had crossed the line into a veritable pageant of political corruption. Each year, the pair would hold a lavish ball for the prostitutes, gamblers, bribing businessmen, and shady characters of their district, raising as much as $50,000 in tribute to their protection.
By 1908, the First Ward Ball had become so brazen and notorious that newspapers from around the country reported on the open display of debauchery in America’s fastest-growing city. And reformers, concerned about Chicago’s reputation, began to pressure political leaders to put an end to the annual celebration of Chicago’s political corruption.
On December 13, 1908, a bomb detonated at the Chicago Coliseum, where the First Ward Ball was to be held less than two weeks later. Hundreds of windows in the area were broken, and two workers preparing for the event were feared buried in rubble. But the event went on as planned. Sustained public pressure prompted Chicago Mayor Fred Busse to put an end to the soiree the following year.
In 1923, additional reforms reduced the number of Chicago aldermen per ward from two to one, and Kenna left the city council to his partner Coughlin. Kenna won election as First Ward Committeeman that year, an influential political post paid for by the political party. Kenna remained First Ward Committeman until his death in 1946 at age 89.
Kenna left an estate of over a million dollars, and bequeathed $33,000 for a mausoleum to honor his legacy. But instead-- perhaps in an ironic nod to heredity-- his heirs divided his memorial money and left him with an $85 tombstone.
Sources: New York Times, Wikipedia, Abbott, Karen: Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America’s Soul
