Harold Himmel Velde (April 1, 1910 – September 1, 1985) was a Republican

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political figure from Illinois. While United States Congressman for Illinois's 18th congressional district he was chairman of the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly dubbed the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 1938 to investigate alleged disloy ...

between 1953 and 1955.

Background

Velde was born on a farm near Parkland,

Tazewell County, Illinois Tazewell County () is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 135,394. Its county seat and largest city is Pekin. It is pronounced with a short "a", to rhyme with "razz" rather than "raze." ...

. After attending rural grade and high school, he attended Bradley University from 1927 to 1929, then graduated from Northwestern University in 1931 and from

University of Illinois Law School The University of Illinois College of Law (Illinois Law or UIUC Law) is the law school of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a public university in Champaign, Illinois. It was established in 1897 and offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S. ...

in 1937.

Career

Velde was admitted to the bar as a lawyer, taking up practice in Pekin, Illinois. Velde served as a

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in the United States Army Signal Corps in 1942 until becoming a special agent for the FBI's sabotage and counterespionage division in 1943, staying there until 1946. In 1946, he was then elected judge for

and remained judge until 1949. In 1948, Velde won election to the United States House of Representatives, taking his seat on January 3, 1949. In the 83rd United States Congress, he became chairman of the

after the previous chairman,

J. Parnell Thomas John Parnell Thomas (January 16, 1895 – November 19, 1970) was a stockbroker and politician. He was elected to seven terms as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from New Jersey as a Republican Party (United States), Re ...

of New Jersey, went to prison for taking kickbacks. Velde did not run in 1956, and ended his four terms in Congress on January 3, 1957. After Congress, Velde returned to practicing law: He was a lawyer in Urbana, Illinois and Washington, D.C. until May 5, 1969. He became a regional

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for the General Services Administration in

Lansing, Illinois Lansing is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Lansing is a south suburb of Chicago. The population was 29,076 at the 2020 census. Geography Lansing is located at (41.565785, -87.545791). It is south of the Chicago city limits a ...

in 1969.

Personal and death

In 1974, he retired to

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, where he died on September 1, 1985. His ashes were interred in Pekin, Illinois, at Lakeside Cemetery.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Velde, Harold H. 1910 births 1985 deaths People from Tazewell County, Illinois Northwestern University alumni University of Illinois College of Law alumni American people of Dutch descent Federal Bureau of Investigation agents United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II Military personnel from Illinois Illinois lawyers Illinois state court judges Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois Arizona Republicans 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American politicians People from Sun City, Arizona People from Pekin, Illinois 20th-century American judges American anti-communists

Background

Career

Personal and death

See also

References

External links