Commemorating the Killed

Born: 1891
Occupation: Auto Driver
Killed: July 28th, 1919
Cause of death: Shooting

Stefan Horvath, a white man, was born in 1891 in Hungary to John Horvath and Clara Capo. Cook County records indicate that, in 1913, Horvath married Mary Liber from Kiral, Hungary, in Aurora, Illinois, an industrial suburb of Chicago. US military records indicate that a “Stephen Horvath,” also born in 1891, was drafted into the US Army during the First World War. Horvath’s draft card lists his job as an “auto driver” in the West Loop of Chicago and his home address as 1059 Congress St. in Chicago.

Horvath was killed under mysterious circumstances on July 28th, 1919. At the time of his killing, Horvath was standing at the corner of Root and State Streets in the “Black Belt.” According to the Commission Report, a crowd of fifty to seventy five African Americans had gathered at the intersection but only three were standing on the corner where the shooting occurred. The only eyewitness was a police officer who testified that he saw three people from the crowd shoot Horvath before fleeing. Horvath’s killers were never apprehended or indicted. Horvath was 28 when killed.