John Alfred Pickler (January 24, 1844 - June 13, 1910) was an American politician. He served as a member of the

United States House of Representatives 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

Biography

Pickler was born in Salem, Indiana, and moved to Davis County, Iowa in his youth. He attended public schools in Davis and enlisted in the

3rd Iowa Cavalry Regiment The 3rd Iowa Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 3rd Iowa Cavalry was organized at Keokuk, Iowa and mustered in for three years of Federal service between August 30, 18 ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. He was promoted to the rank of

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

by the end of the war. He graduated from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

in 1870, attended the

Old University of Chicago The Old University of Chicago was the legal name given in 1890 to the University of Chicago's first incorporation. The school, founded in 1856 by Baptist church leaders, was originally called the "University of Chicago" (or, interchangeably, "Ch ...

Law School in 1871 and graduated from the law school at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1872. He was admitted to the bar in 1872 and began practicing law in

Kirksville, Missouri Kirksville is the county seat and most populous city in Adair County, Missouri. Located in Benton Township, its population was 17,530 at the 2020 census. Kirksville is home to two colleges: Truman State University and A.T. Still University. ...

. The Maj. John A. Pickler Homestead is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Career

Pickler was a Republican

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He was elected district attorney of Adair County, Missouri in 1872. He moved to Muscatine, Iowa and served in the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

from 1881 to 1883. He moved to the

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...

and served in the territorial legislature in 1884. While serving in the Dakota Legislature, he played a key role in introducing the territory's first bill to give women the right to vote. After

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

was admitted as a state, he was elected as a Republican to Seat A, one of South Dakota's at-large seats in the

. He was reelected in 1890, 1892, and 1894, and served from November 2, 1889 to March 3, 1897. Pickler and his wife, Alice Alt Pickler, worked for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

in the state. In his final term he was chairman of the Committee on Invalid Pensions. He chose not to run for re-election in 1896. After leaving Congress, Pickler resumed the practice of law, and also became active in the real estate business.

Death

Pickler died on June 13, 1910 in

Faulkton, South Dakota Faulkton is a city in and county seat of Faulk County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 826 at the 2020 census. The city's nickname is "The Carousel City". History Faulkton was platted in 1886. It was named for Andrew Jackson Fau ...

at the age of sixty-six. He is interred at Faulkton Cemetery in Faulkton.

References

External links

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John Pickler
at GovTrack.us
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pickler, John 1844 births 1910 deaths Members of the Iowa House of Representatives Members of the Dakota Territorial Legislature People from Salem, Indiana University of Chicago Law School alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Dakota People from Davis County, Iowa 19th-century American politicians People from Faulkton, South Dakota South Dakota suffrage American suffragists