page_title: Michael Kenna
section_title: 1st Ward
hierarchical_section_title: Michael Kenna / Political career / 1st Ward
caption_attribution_description: English: The boundaries of Chicago's 1st ward in 1893 (dark green) and 1946 (light green + dark green). 12th street was renamed Roosevelt Road in 1919.
context_page_description: Michael Kenna, also known as "Hinky Dink", was an American politician who served as alderman of Chicago's 1st Ward from 1897 to 1923 and again from 1939 to 1943. In addition to his position as alderman he was committeeman of the 1st Ward for the Democratic Party from 1893 to 1944. Representing the Chicago Loop and later its environs in such capacities, he led what was often called the "world's richest ward". He and his partner, fellow 1st Ward alderman "Bathhouse John" Coughlin, controlled the ward for most of the first half of the 20th century.
  A part of 1st Ward politics for more than 60 years, Kenna possessed great influence on the municipal affairs of Chicago, being able to make or break the prospects of Democratic candidates for the mayoralty. In large part with Kenna's help Coughlin would serve as alderman of the ward for 46 years. Possessing such influence despite his short stature and unassuming presence, he and Coughlin constructed a political machine that would last for the better part of the 20th century.
  Kenna was notoriously corrupt; he, Coughlin, and several other aldermen led what was known as the "Gray Wolves", a group that attracted much scorn from reformers.
context_section_description: At the close of the 19th century Chicago had a reputation of bad morals, central to which was the 1st Ward, home to a teeming vice district. It was also home to Chicago's central business district, which would later be called "the Loop" after the looping elevated railroad trackage constructed in it in the late 1890s. Due to the presence of the Loop the 1st Ward was often known as the "world's richest" ward, a fact which Coughlin would use to fire back at critics of his tenure. As the first half of the 20th century progressed the 1st Ward would expand southward to also encompass most of the surrounding Near South Side.
  At the time of Kenna's ascendancy the vice elements of the 1st Ward and throughout the city were protected by "King Mike" McDonald, who had lived in the city since the late 1850s and controlled its gambling since shortly thereafter, and was credited with first saying "there's a sucker born every minute." However, by 1890, his reign began to end and a power vacuum started developing.
  Corruption was not uncommon in late 19th-century Chicago; aldermen would charge for licenses and infrastructural projects within their wards, a practice known as "boodling". A group of aldermen including Kenna and Coughlin known as the "Gray Wolves" were particularly infamous for their propensities towards boodling. Supporters of the pair said that Kenna and Coughlin were unfairly targeted by the reformers and yet reelected by their constituents every election cycle.
caption: Boundaries of the 1st Ward in   1893   1946
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