Earl Bush papers, Bulk, 1955-1973

Earl Bush served as press secretary for Mayor Richard J. Daley from 1955 to 1973 and acted as Daley's right-hand man during those years. He briefed the press, provided advice, and wrote speeches for the mayor. In 1973, a federal corruption probe discovered that a decade earlier, Bush had acquired stock in Dell Airport Advertising and had recommended the company for city advertising contracts. In the resulting scandal, Bush lost his job and was eventually convicted of federal mail fraud charges. In 1989, a federal judge overturned the conviction, but the guilty verdict was never formally expunged.

Bush continued to serve, though in an unofficial capacity, as an advisor to a number of Chicago-area politicians, such Mayor Michael Bilandic, who served from 1976 to 1979, and Richard M. Daley, the son of Richard J. Daley, who served as state's attorney for Cook County from 1981 to 1989 and as Mayor from 1989 to 2011 .Bush also worked for a few years for the Community Colleges of Chicago, and he participated briefly as a political commentator on a local radio program. He died in 2006.

Sources Consulted

"Bush Quits Daley Staff; Was Top Aide." Chicago Tribune. 2 August 1973.

Gilbert, David and Ronald Koziol. "Ex-City Aide Owns Stock in Ad Firm for O'Hare." Chicago Tribune. 3 August 1973.

Jensen, Trevor. "Earl Bush, 1915-2006." Chicago Tribune. 21 July 2006.

Kennedy, Eugene Cullen. "Mayor's Advisor Was Honorable Friend Too." Chicago Tribune, 23 July 2006.

United States v. Earl Bush, 522 F.2d 641; 1975 U.S. App. Lexis 12883. (1975)

United States v. Earl Bush, 888 F.2d 1145; 1989 U.S. App. Lexis 16586. (1989)

During 2003, Earl Bush donated these papers to the Office of the University of Illinois at Chicago Historian. The original order of the collection appears to have been mostly chronological and to have been organized into two general categories. The University Historian named these categories the "Chronological Files" and the "Topical Files."

This collection is organized into two series to reflect that original order. Series I, the "Chronological Files," consists primarily of speeches, memoranda, background materials, some newspaper clippings, and press releases. This series has been organized in chronological order. Series II, the "Topical Files," include items that Bush collected and kept together separately. This series has been organized mostly in chronological order. A few files with no assigned dates have been organized alphabetically. Finally, twenty-two files of newspaper clippings, organized chronologically, appear together at the end of Series II.

The bulk of this collection covers the years 1955-1973, during which Bush served as an official advisor to Mayor Richard J. Daley. A few items date back to the months and years that preceded Daley's election in 1955. A large number of files contain materials that pertain to the decade following Bush's departure from the mayor's office. This collection includes originals and photocopies of originals, and researchers may find that some files occasionally have duplicates of items found in other files. Bush also often attached short notes, some handwritten and some typewritten, to the speeches. These notes contain his view of the significance of the speech in question.

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Earl Bush papers, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Illinois at Chicago

• Names
  • Bush, Earl, 1915-2006 -- Archives
  • Chicago (Ill.). Mayor (1955-1976 : Daley).
  • Daley, Richard J., 1902-1976
• Geographic CoverageIllinois--Chicago.
• SubjectPolitics and government.