Fred Ernst Busbey was born in Tuscola, Illinois on February 8, 1895. He attended the Armour Institute of Technology in Chicago and Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. On September 24, 1917, Ernst enlisted in the U.S. Army and served overseas as a sergeant until the Armistice in 1918, when he was made a battalion sergeant major in the 124th Field Artillery, 33rd Division. He was discharged on June 8, 1919. In 1930, he began working in the investment brokerage business in Chicago. Busbey served as Illinois representative from 1943-1945, 1947-49, and 1951-55, and later resumed the investment brokerage business in Cocoa Beach, Florida until he retired in 1958. He died there on February 11, 1966.
From the guide to the Fred E. Busbey Papers, 1910-1965, (Repository Unknown)
