Henry Allen Cooper (September 8, 1850 – March 1, 1931) was a
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
from
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
.
Early life
Cooper was born in
Spring Prairie, Wisconsin, son of former
Free Soil Party
The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery int ...
State Representative Joel H. Cooper, a physician. In 1851 the family moved to
Burlington, Wisconsin
Burlington is a city in Racine and Walworth counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, with the majority of the city located in Racine County. The population of the city was 11,047 as of the 2020 census.
History
Prior to the arrival of Europea ...
. Their house was a station of the
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...
, and in 1852 sheltered
fugitive slave Joshua Cooper on his way to
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Henry Cooper graduated from
Burlington High School in June 1869. After school, Cooper attended
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
in
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...
, and graduated in 1873. He then attended
Union College of Law
Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law is the law school of Northwestern University, a private research university. It is located on the university's Chicago campus. Northwestern Law has been ranked among the top 14, or "T14" law sch ...
, then the legal faculty of
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
and graduated there in 1875. He was then admitted to the bar, practiced in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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until 1879 and then commenced practice at Burlington.
Cooper was elected
District Attorney of
Racine County in November 1880 and moved to
Racine
Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...
in January 1881. In 1882 and 1884 he was reelected as District Attorney without opposition.
Political career
In 1884, Cooper served as a delegate to the
Republican National Convention, a tradition he would continue in 1908 and 1924. He was subsequently elected to
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* District 3, Düsseldorf, in Germany
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of the
Wisconsin State Senate
The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the larger Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after t ...
for the term 1887 to 1889 and authored a bill to introduce the
secret ballot in Wisconsin. In 1890 Cooper unsuccessfully ran for election to the
fifty-second Congress.
In 1892, Cooper was elected as a
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Congressman to the
fifty-third Congress, an office he assumed on March 4, 1893, that year. He represented
Wisconsin's 1st congressional district
Wisconsin's 1st congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in southeastern Wisconsin, covering Kenosha County, Racine County, and most of Walworth County, as well as portions of Rock Count ...
. During his time as Congressman, Cooper served as the chairman of the
Committee of Rivers and Harbors for the
fifty-fifth Congress
The 55th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1897, to M ...
and the
Committee on Insular Affairs for the
fifty-sixth Congress
The 56th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1899, ...
through to the
sixtieth Congress
The 60th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1907, to M ...
.
He was also the author of the
Philippine Organic Act (1902)
The Philippine Organic Act (c. 1369, ) was a basic law for the Insular Government that was enacted by the United States Congress on July 1, 1902. It is also known as the Philippine Bill of 1902 and the Cooper Act, after its author Henry A. Coope ...
, and read out the poem
Mi último adiós
"Mi último adiós" ( en, "My Last Farewell") is a poem written by Filipino propagandist and writer Dr. José Rizal before his execution by firing squad on December 30, 1896. The piece was one of the last notes he wrote before his death. Another ...
by
José Rizal as part of successfully persuading his fellow congressmen to vote for the act. Cooper provided key support for the 1910 bill authorizing construction of the
Lincoln Memorial.
[ ]
On April 5, 1917, he was one of 50 representatives who voted against declaring war on Germany. Partly due to his opposition to American involvement in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Cooper failed to gain reelection to his seat in 1918, finishing his term on March 3, 1919. Overall serving from the Fifty-third Congress to the
Sixty-fifth Congress.
After missing a term of Congress, Cooper was once again elected to represent Wisconsin's 1st district in the
Sixty-seventh Congress in 1920 and to the five succeeding Congresses. He served until his death in
Washington D.C.
)
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on March 1, 1931, which came before he could start his new term (in the
seventy-second Congress
The 72nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1931 ...
). He was buried in Mound Cemetery,
Racine, Wisconsin.
See also
*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)
*
Sources
Cooper, Henry Allen - Wisconsin Historical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Henry Allen
1850 births
1931 deaths
District attorneys in Wisconsin
Republican Party Wisconsin state senators
Northwestern University alumni
Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law alumni
Union College (New York) alumni
People from Burlington, Wisconsin
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin
Illinois lawyers
People from Spring Prairie, Wisconsin
Deans of the United States House of Representatives