TROHAN, Walter (Joseph) 1903-2003

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born July 4, 1903, in Mt. Carmel, PA; died October 30, 2003, in Columbia, MD. Journalist and author. Trohan was a highly respected journalist and former Washington, DC, bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune. Starting his career as a reporter right out of high school, he worked for a time for the Daily Calumet before enrolling in college. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1926 and became a reporter for the City News Bureau in Chicago. During the Roaring Twenties, the big story in Chicago was the rampant mob activity, and Trohan gained attention when he was the first reporter to cover the St. Valentine's Day massacre. Hired soon after that by the Chicago Tribune, Trohan continued to work as a crime reporter but moved on to politics when he was made a Washington correspondent in 1934. Beginning with Franklin Roosevelt, Trohan became friends with several U.S. presidents and other important Washington figures, such as FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover; yet he never allowed such friendships to prevent him from criticizing the administration or other politicians when he felt they were in the wrong. Made Washington bureau chief in 1948, Trohan covered many other big stories, such as President Truman's firing of General Douglas MacArthur during the Korean War. Leaving this post in 1968, he continued to write columns for the Chicago Tribune until his retirement in 1972. During his career, Trohan received two Edward Scott Beck Editorial Awards, and he was inducted into the Delta Sigma Chi Journalistic Hall of Fame in 1976. He was also the author of two books: Jim Farley's Story (1948) and Political Animals (1975).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

BOOKS

Taft, William H., Encyclopedia of Twentieth-CenturyJournalists, Garland Publishing (New York, NY), 1986.

PERIODICALS

Baltimore Sun, November 2, 2003.

Chicago Tribune, October 31, 2003, Section 1, p. 11.