Walter S. Pytko

Representing the Polish-American Citizens League, Pytko joined a group of neighborhood leaders in endorsing the mayoral candidacy of Republican J. Hampton Moore in 1931.

[3] Soon after joining the Senate, Pytko introduced a bill making it a crime to fraudulently receive poor relief, which passed unanimously.

[11] Following his defeat, Pytko was named to the newly created Employment Board of the Department of Public Assistance by outgoing Democratic Governor George Howard Earle III.

[13] He ran for sheriff of Philadelphia later that year, but withdrew in favor of former U.S. Attorney Gerald A. Gleeson, who lost to Republican David E.

[16] The Pennsylvania delegates united on the choice of Roosevelt for a third term, but split over the vice presidency, with Pytko unsuccessfully backing Governor Lloyd C. Stark of Missouri.

[17][4] In 1947, the Democrats nominated him for Receiver of Taxes, but he lost to Republican W. Frank Marshall in the general election that year.

One of the charter changes involved the creation of a Department of Licenses and Inspections, and newly elected mayor Joseph S. Clark Jr. appointed Pytko to head it.

[4] Pytko pledged stricter enforcement, saying that "Any inspector who takes a bribe or accepts money not only will be dismissed but also will be prosecuted.

[22] He gained a reputation for honesty; according to Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Saul Schraga, Pytko became known as "the man who wouldn't do a favor."

[23] In 1962, Victor Moore resigned from his at-large seat on City Council, necessitating a special election later that year.

[26] In December of that year, he introduced the resolution that renamed Municipal Stadium in South Philadelphia after President John F. Kennedy, who had been assassinated a month earlier.

[3] After a funeral at St. John Cantius Roman Catholic Church, he was buried in Most Holy Redeemer Cemetery in Bridesburg.