Benjamin F. Lewis

Benjamin Franklin Lewis (December 2, 1909 – February 28, 1963) was an American politician who served as alderman of Chicago's 24th ward from 1958 until he was murdered in his ward office in 1963. The case remains unsolved.

Lewis was a native of Georgia, but a long-time resident of Chicago, and he was the first black political leader of a ward that had been dominated by Jews. He was known for his brash fashion and quick-witted personality, and he lived a luxurious life and was a presumptive future leader of Chicago's black community. There are many possible suspects for his murder, since Chicago's political landscape was notoriously corrupt at the time. and moved to Chicago's west side with his family as a child, attending Crane High School and Crane Junior College.

Tenure as alderman Chicago's 24th ward encompassed the North Lawndale community area, known locally as "Lawndale", which was a Russian Jewish stronghold into the 1950s, after which it became predominantly black. Despite the Jewish flight in the 1950s, whites continued to control the ward and fought to retain that control; Judge Carl H. Smith dismissed the suit on June 6, holding the complaint to be insufficient, and Lewis took office on April 8, 1958. During his tenure, he courted controversy when he referred clients to his own insurance business despite receiving $50 a month and five percent on commissions of business for referring clients to insurance agent Arthur X. Elrod, Inc. 13,189 votes to 888. Jimmy Hoffa historian Dan Moldea claimed that the hitman was a friend of Jack Ruby. It was popularly believed at the time that the murder was unsolvable as there were too many suspects given Lewis's activities,

After Lewis's death the office of 24th ward alderman remained vacant until future Congressman George W. Collins assumed it on January 21, 1964. According to historian Richard Lindberg, the murder "capped off an open lawlessness in the city with regards to its politicians that [had] been going on ... since the time of Al Capone". and successfully petitioned the City Council to designate Pulaski Road between Harrison Street and Cermak Road as "Benjamin F. Lewis Road".