Harry B. Hershey

Black and white photograph of a man in a suit. White cursive writing across the man's shoulders at the bottom. Cream colored background with double line circular brown border around the edge.

Harry B. Hershey was born in Mifflin, Ohio, and lived from 1885 to 1967. During his lifetime, he was an attorney, mayor, and Illinois Supreme Court Justice. In 1909, he earned his Applied Baccalaureate Degree, A.B. Degree, from the University of Illinois. Three years later, he graduated from the University of Chicago with his J.D. Degree. 

After passing his bar exam, the city of Taylorville elected him as the city attorney, followed by him serving two terms as Christian County’s state attorney. A couple of years later, he was elected the Taylorville Mayor. Taylorville is a small city in central Illinois with a little over 10,000 residents. Taylorville is the seat of Christian County, and is the only city in the county.

Hershey was well-known at the time while running for Governor of Illinois in 1940 as the Democratic candidate. He lost to Dwight H. Green, the Republican candidate. Hershey held several other state government positions in the following years before being appointed to the Illinois Supreme Court in 1951 as a justice. He served for sixteen years on the Illinois Supreme Court and served one term as the chief justice.