Peter Kiołbassa

Biography:

Peter Kiołbassa was a Polonia activist and Democratic politician in the city of Chicago. He served as Chicago Treasurer and Commissioner of Public Works. Nicknamed Honest Pete because he refused to take city funds from financial decisions made as Treasurer he broke from the tradition of his predecessors. He was the first Pole to be elected to such positions in the city and he is remembered with admiration in both Poland and within the Polish-American community.