Politics / Business & brands
John Lesinski Sr.
1885–1950 · businessman, congressman, Polish community leader
Detroit-raised Polish-American builder and lumber dealer who led the Polish Citizens' Committee of Detroit, recruited thousands of Polish volunteers in World War I and served in Congress from 1933 to 1950.
- Born
Erie, Pennsylvania- Died
Dearborn, Michigan
aged 65- Detroit years
- 1885–1950
- Field
- Politics, Business & brands
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Lesinski was born in Erie, Pennsylvania, in January 1885, and his family moved to Detroit three months later. He studied at the Polish seminary of SS. Cyril and Methodius and at Detroit Business University, then built a career in construction and real estate, founding lumber and building-supply companies in Hamtramck and Dearborn. During World War I he became one of the leading voices of Detroit's Polish community and was credited with recruiting thousands of Polish-Americans and Polish-Canadians to fight; afterward, as a state commissioner, he oversaw bond sales to fund the rebuilding of independent Poland, which awarded him the Order of Polonia Restituta. He was president of the Polish Citizens' Committee of Detroit from 1919 to 1932. Elected to Congress in 1932 from the new 16th district, based in Dearborn and west Detroit, he served until his death in 1950, chairing the House Committee on Education and Labor in his final term. His son John Lesinski Jr. succeeded him.
Highlights
- President of the Polish Citizens' Committee of Detroit, 1919–1932
- Recruited thousands of Polish volunteers in World War I
- Awarded the Polish Order of Polonia Restituta
- US Representative from Michigan, 1933–1950
- Buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Detroit
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Buried here · 1950
Mount Olivet Cemetery (Detroit)
East-side Catholic cemetery where Lesinski is buried.