(1918-1983)
Inducted into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, 1992
Jacob Dunn grew up in Hartford and graduated from Hartford Public High School, where he played basketball and football. At the University of Connecticut, he received letters in football and basketball and also played hockey. He also played for the original YMHA basketball team, known as the “Pleasant Street Boys,” who won the city basketball championship before a crowd of 1,000 excited spectators. Dunn was named to the All-City team as “the shining light of the YMHA championship team this season,” along with Rube Cohen.
Dunn graduated with a law degree from New York University and began practicing law in 1929. He was associate judge of the City Court from 1939-41 when he was appointed a Police Court judge. In the community, he was a director, treasurer, and president of Mt. Sinai Hospital and a member of the Elks and Masons.
Dunn was active in Republican Party politics in Hartford, chairing the Third Ward Republican Committee for many years; he was elected as the leader of the Hartford Republicans in a city convention in 1949, wielding influence in statewide politics.