John Anderson Brooks (June 3, 1836 – February 3, 1897) was a religious scholar and prohibitionist who served as the

Prohibition Party The Prohibition Party (PRO) is a political party in the United States known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages and as an integral part of the temperance movement. It is the oldest existing third party ...

's vice presidential nominee during the 1888 presidential election.

Life

John Anderson Brooks was born on June 3, 1836, in

Mason County, Kentucky Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Its county seat is Maysville. The county was created from Bourbon County, Virginia in 1788 and named for George Mason, a Virginia delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention kn ...

to John Thomas Brooks and Elizabeth Branch Anderson. He graduated from Bethany College in Virginia in 1856. In 1877, he moved to Mexico where he was a pastor until 1880 when he returned to the United States and became a pastor in Kansas City from 1888 to 1892. Before the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, in which he served as a Confederate chaplain, he was a member of the Whig Party, but afterwards joined the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. He later joined the

and served as its Missouri gubernatorial nominee in 1884 and as its vice presidential nominee in 1888. In 1892, he moved to Memphis, but in 1894 he moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and served as a pastor until he returned to Memphis in 1896. On February 3, 1897, he died in Memphis, Tennessee from heart failure and his body was later moved and buried in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

References

1836 births 1897 deaths People from Mason County, Kentucky People from Sedalia, Missouri 20th-century American politicians American temperance activists Missouri Prohibitionists People of Kentucky in the American Civil War Bethany College (West Virginia) alumni Prohibition Party (United States) vice presidential nominees 1888 United States vice-presidential candidates {{Missouri-politician-stub