b June 7, 1894, New York, NY; d Dec. 12, 1835, Washington, DC.
Lawyer; state legislator (1818–1822); U.S. senator (1824–1835); namesake of Kane County.
Kapp, Jack
b June 15, 1901, Chicago; d Mar. 25, 1949, New York, NY.
Record producer; worked for Columbia Records in Chicago; brought Decca Records to the United States.
Katz, Sam
b ca. 1892, Chicago; d Jan. 11, 1961, Beverly Hills, CA.
Founded Balaban & Katz; head of production at MGM.
Kearney, Andrew Thomas
b July 5, 1892, Brockway, PA; d Jan. 11, 1962, Chicago.
Management consultant.
Keck, George Fred
b May 17, 1895, Watertown, WI; d Nov. 21, 1980, Chicago.
Architect; designed 12-sided glass House of Tomorrow for Century of Progress Exposition.
Keeley, James
b Oct. 14, 1867, London, England; d June 7, 1934, Lake Forest, IL.
Managing editor of Chicago Tribune; owner of Chicago Herald.
Kehl, Frederick W.
b Aug. 19, 1862, Eiterfeld, Germany; d Aug. 11, 1938, Chicago.
Ballroom dancer; dance teacher; founded Chicago Association of Dancing Masters.
Kelley, Daniel
b May 3, 1818, Rutland County, VT; d 1900.
Wool grower; donated land for railroad station near what became Carol Stream.
Kelley, Florence
b Sept. 12, 1859, Philadelphia, PA; d Feb. 17, 1932, Germantown, PA.
Lawyer; social reformer; Hull House resident; first woman chief inspector of factories for Illinois; secretary of National Consumers' League; cofounded U.S. Children's Bureau.
Kellogg, Alice D. [Alice Kellogg Tyler]
b Dec. 27, 1862, Chicago; d Feb. 14, 1900, Chicago.
Painter; teacher; one of the first pupils at Art Institute of Chicago.
Kelly, Edward Joseph
b May 1, 1876, Chicago; d Oct. 20, 1950, Chicago.
Mayor of Chicago (1933–1947).
Kelly, Lawrence V.
b May 30, 1928, Chicago; d Sept. 16, 1974, Kansas City, MO.
Dancer; cofounded Lyric Theatre of Chicago and Dallas Civic Opera.
Kemper, James Scott
b Nov. 18, 1886, Van Wert, OH; d Sept. 17, 1981, Chicago.
Insurance executive; ambassador; philanthropist; organized Kemper Insurance group and James S. Kemper & Co.
Kempf, Tud
b Oct. 22, 1886, Jasper, IN.
Artist; sculptor; woodcarver; active in WPA projects.
Kendall, Curtis P.
b July 25, 1898, Louisville, KY; d July 4, 1949, Kenilworth, IL.
Businessman; Washington National Insurance Co.; benefactor of Kendall College.
Kenna, “Hinky Dink” Mike
b Aug. 20, 1857, Chicago; d Oct. 9, 1946, Chicago.
Alderman; bossed First Ward with “Bathhouse” John Coughlin.
Kennedy, Joseph Patrick
b Sept. 6, 1888, Boston, MA; d Nov. 18, 1969, Hyannis, MA.
Entrepreneur; ambassador to England; first chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission; bought Merchandise Mart (1945).
Kennelly, Martin H.
b Aug. 11, 1887, Chicago; d Nov. 29, 1961, Chicago.
Warehouse and trucking executive; mayor of Chicago (1947–1955).
Kennicott, John A.
b Jan. 5, 1802, NY; d June 4, 1863, Glenview, IL.
Doctor; early nursery man; horticultural editor of Prairie Farmer; promoted Morrill Act establishing land grant colleges.
Kennicott, Robert
b Nov. 13, 1835, New Orleans, LA; d May 13, 1866, Ft. Nulato, AL.
Naturalist; cofounded Chicago Academy of Sciences.
Kent, Trumbull
b ca. 1827, Oswego County, NY.
Farmer in Palatine; arrived in 1835.
Kenyon, William Asbury
b Aug. 22, 1817, Hingham, MA; d Jan. 25, 1862, Hingham, MA.
Early Chicago Poet.
Keppard, Freddie
b Feb. 27, 1890, New Orleans, LA; d July 15, 1933, Chicago.
Musician; cornetist; played in Chicago clubs.
Kern, Herbert Arthur
b Aug. 31, 1890, Lake Elmo, MN; d Feb. 28, 1963, La Grange, IL.
Chemical firm executive; founded Chicago Chemical Co. (1920), later Nalco Chemical Co.
Kern, Peter
active 1850s.
Landowner; assessor; bought land in what would become Summit.
Kerner, Otto
b Aug. 15, 1908, Chicago; d May 9, 1976, Chicago.
Federal judge; governor of Illinois; chaired National Advisor Commission on Civil Disorders (1967); convicted in racetrack scandal.
Kerr, Charles Hope
b Apr. 23, 1860, LaGrange, GA; d June 1, 1944, Los Angeles, CA.
Socialist publisher; cofounded Charles H. Kerr publishing house; published International Socialist Review.
Kettlestrings, Joseph
b Nov. 7, 1808, Newton, England; d Nov. 17, 1883, probably Chicago.
Early landowner in Oak Park; member of Bickerdike & Noble firm.
Khan, Fazlur Rahman
b Apr. 3, 1929, Dacca, Bangladesh; d Mar. 27, 1982, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Structural engineer; innovator in skyscraper design; designed Sears Tower and John Hancock Center.
Kikulski, John
b Aug. 29, 1876, Poland; d May 21, 1920, Chicago.
Union organizer of Stockyards Labor Council.
Kimball, Ingalls
b Apr. 2, 1874, West Newton, MA; d Oct. 16, 1933, Mt. McGregor, NY.
Publisher; insurance executive; founded publishing house Stone & Kimball.
Kimbell, Martin Nelson
b Jan. 24, 1812, Stillwater, NY; d Feb. 13, 1895, Chicago.
Early farmer; claimed land in Jefferson Township (now Logan Square).
Kimberly, Edmund S.
b 1803; d 1874, Libertyville, IL.
Physician; Chicago's first village clerk; elected to first Board of Trustees.
Kimmelman, Susan
b July 15, 1948, Brooklyn, NY; d Aug. 26, 2001, Chicago.
Choreographer; lawyer; cofounded MoMing Dance and Arts Center.
Kincaid, Bradley
b July 13, 1895, Garrard County, KY; d Sept. 23, 1989, Springfield, OH.
Country singer; composer; known for his arrangement of “Barbara Allen.”
Kincheloe, Samuel C.
b Nov. 20, 1890, Georgetown, OH; d July 15, 1981.
Sociologist; professor; applied scientific methods to study of religious institutions; wrote The American City and Its Church (1938).
King, Martin Luther, Jr.
b Jan. 15, 1929, Atlanta, GA; d Apr. 4, 1968, Memphis, TN.
Baptist minister; civil rights leader; received 1964 Nobel Peace Prize; played prominent role in Chicago open-housing movement.
Kingery, Robert
b Sept. 26, 1890, Emporia, KS; d Nov. 13, 1951, Evanston, IL.
Engineer; general manager of Chicago Regional Planning Association; chairman of Chicago Port Authority.
Kinzie, Eleanor Lyttle
b ca. 1769–1771; d early 1834, NY.
Early settler in Chicago.
Kinzie, John
b Dec. 3, 1763, Quebec, Canada; d Jan. 6, 1828, Chicago.
Fur trader; agent of the American Fur Co. (1827).
Kinzie, John H.
b July 7, 1803, Sandwich, Ontario; d June 21, 1865, on the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad.
Fur trader, first president of Chicago Historical Society.
Kinzie, Juliette Augusta Magill
b Sept. 11, 1806, Middletown, CT; d Sept. 14, 1870, Amagansett, Long Island.
Early Chicago settler; wrote Wau-Bun, the “Early Day” in the North-West (1856).
Kiolbassa, Peter
b Oct. 13, 1838, Swibiu, Poland; d June 23, 1905, Chicago.
Businessman; building commissioner; city treasurer; state legislator (1877–1879); alderman; leading role in establishment of St. Stanislaus Kostka parish.
Kirkland, Joseph
b Jan. 7, 1830, Geneva, NY; d Apr. 29, 1894, Chicago.
Writer; soldier; lawyer; wrote local histories of Chicago and novel Zury.
Kissel, Ben D.
b Feb. 17, 1897; d Jan. 4, 1967, Chicago.
Parking entrepreneur; converted old buildings to parking garages.
Kitchell, Iva
b Mar. 31, 1912, Junction City, KS; d Nov. 9, 1983, Ormond Beach, FL.
Concert dancer; dance satirist; performed with Chicago Grand Opera Ballet Company.
Kittredge, William A.
b May 28, 1891, Lowell, MA; d July 26, 1945, Evanston, IL.
Typographer; author; printer; director of design at Lakeside Press.
Klehm, John Adam
b July 14, 1834, Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany; d Mar. 16, 1916, Arlington Heights, IL.
Bricklayer; farmer; established nursery business in Arlington Heights.
Klootwyck, Peter
b 1847, Holland; d 1914, Munster, IN.
Operated small store in Munster in nineteenth century.
Kluczynski, John Carl
b Feb. 15, 1896, Chicago; d Jan. 26, 1975, Chicago.
State representative (1933–1948); U.S. representative (1951–1975).
Klutznick, Philip M.
b July 9, 1907, Kansas City, MO; d Aug. 14, 1999, Chicago.
Lawyer; real-estate developer; philanthropist; developed Park Forest.
Knapp, Albert A.
b Jan. 20, 1852, IL; d Dec. 20, 1932, Oak Park, IL.
Businessman; built a combination creamery and cheese factory in 1873.
Kner, Albert
b Feb. 19, 1899, Gyoma, Hungary; d Aug. 1976.
Entrepreneur; pioneer in development of package design and market research; worked for Container Corp. of America.
Kner, Elizabeth
b Oct. 7, 1897, Gyoma, Hungary; d Feb. 26, 1998, Chicago.
Printer; bookbinder at Newberry Library.
Knight, Frank Hyneman
b Nov. 7, 1885, White Oak, IL; d Apr. 15, 1972, Chicago.
Economist; part of Chicago School of Economics; Univ. of Chicago faculty.
Knox, William Franklin
b Jan. 1, 1874, Boston, MA; d Apr. 28, 1944, Washington, DC.
Newspaper editor and publisher; U.S. secretary of the navy; owned controlling interest in Chicago Daily News.
Kochs, August
b Aug. 13, 1871, Lichtenau, Germany; d Nov. 21, 1960, Chicago.
Chemical manufacturer; founded Victor Chemical Works (1902).
Kogan, Herman S.
b Nov. 6, 1914, Chicago; d Mar. 8, 1989, New Buffalo, MI.
Journalist; popular historian.
Kohl, Charles E.
b Mar. 28, 1855, Brooklyn, NY; d Nov. 12, 1910, Oconomowoc, WI.
b Mar. 22, 1853, Edwards County, IL; d Oct. 17, 1924, Washington, DC.
Merchant; newspaper publisher; owned chain of bakeries and restaurants.
Kolze, Henry J.
b June 23, 1859, Leyden, IL; d June 11, 1926, Chicago.
Early restaurant owner; built Kolze's hotel in Dunning; county commissioner.
Kolze, Julia M.
b Aug. 28, 1880, Chicago; d Nov. 12, 1938, Schiller Park, IL.
Mayor of Schiller Park; first woman mayor in Illinois (1932).
Kolze, William
b June 9, 1836, Germany; d June 23, 1896, Chicago.
Early landowner near Des Plaines River; honorary mayor of unincorporated Kolze.
Korhumel, Newton F.
b Aug. 21, 1905; d Feb. 5, 2001, Chicago.
Steel manufacturer; developer in Mettawa.
Kotas, Helen [Helen Kotas Hirsch]
b June 7, 1916, Chicago; d Dec. 15, 2000, Chicago.
French horn player; member of Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Kovler, Marjorie
b May 10, 1921, Chicago; d Dec. 20, 1970, Chicago.
Owner of Kovler Art Gallery; namesake of Center for the Treatment of Survivors of Torture.
Kraft, James Lewis
b Nov. 11, 1874, Fort Erie, Canada; d Feb. 16, 1953, Chicago.
Inventor; cheese manufacturer; founded Kraft Foods.
Krainik, Ardis Joan
b Mar. 8, 1929, Manitowoc, WI; d Jan. 18, 1997, Chicago.
Director of Lyric Opera of Chicago (1981–1997).
Kramer, Ferdinand “Ferd”
b Aug. 10, 1901, Chicago; d July 16, 2002, Chicago.
Businessman; head of real-estate firm Draper & Kramer; president of Metropolitan Housing and Planning Council; managed Lake Meadows; developed Prairie Shores.
Kraus, Adolf
b Feb. 26, 1850, Blowitz, Bohemia; d Oct. 22, 1928, Chicago.
Lawyer; president of the Chicago Board of Education; head of City Law Department.
Kroc, Raymond Albert
b Oct. 5, 1902, Oak Park, IL; d Jan. 14, 1984, La Jolla, CA.
Founded McDonald's Corp. and Ronald McDonald House; pioneer in fast-food chain stores; opened first McDonald's franchise restaurant in Des Plaines.
Kruger, John
active late nineteenth century.
Restaurateur; began a small chain of cafeterias in 1890s.
Krumske, Paul A.
b July 25, 1912; d July 23, 1979, Boca Raton, FL.
Hall of Fame bowler; television bowling host on WBKB-TV.
Krupa, Gene
b Jan. 15, 1909, Chicago; d Oct. 16, 1973, Yonkers, NY.
Jazz drummer; played with Benny Goodman in the 1930s and 1940s.
Kryl, Bohumir
b May 2, 1875, Horice, Czechoslovakia; d Aug. 7, 1961, Wilmington, NY.
Conductor; cornetist; joined John Philip Sousa's band in 1898; led “Chicago Band” (ca. 1910s).
Kubelik, Rafael
b June 29, 1914, Bychory, Czechoslovakia; d Aug. 11, 1996, Lucerne, Switzerland.
Conductor; composer; directed Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1950–1953).
Kuh, Katherine W. [Katherine Woolf]
b July 15, 1904, St. Louis, MO; d Jan. 10, 1994, New York, NY.
Art critic; art consultant; first curator of modern art at Art Institute Chicago (1942–1959).
Kuné, Julian
b 1831; d Aug. 29, 1914, Chicago.
Newspaper music critic; member of Chicago Board of Trade; organized 24th Illinois Infantry in Civil War.
Kuppenheimer, Bernard
b 1829, Baden, Germany; d Oct. 27, 1903, Chicago.
Founded B. Kuppenheimer & Co., wholesale clothier.