Thomas Valentine Cooper (January 16, 1835 - December 19, 1909), also known as Thomas V. Cooper, was an American politician from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

who served 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 ...

member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

for Delaware County for the 1870 and 1872 terms. Cooper served as a member of the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealt ...

for district 5 from 1873 to 1874 and for

district 9 ''District 9'' is a 2009 science fiction mockumentary film directed by Neill Blomkamp in his feature film debut, written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham. It is a co-production of New ...

from 1875 to 1889. He was reelected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1901 and served until his death in 1909. Cooper served as a private and an officer in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

during 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 ...

, was a newspaper editor of the Delaware County American newspaper for 54 years and an author of books on political and civil war history.

Early life and military service

Cooper was born in

Cadiz, Ohio Cadiz ( ) is a village in Cadiz Township, Harrison County, Ohio, United States located about 20 miles from Steubenville. The population was 3,353 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Harrison County. History Cadiz was founded in 1803 a ...

to Dr. J.W. and Henrietta (Fields) Cooper. From 1861 to 1864, Cooper served in the Union Army during the Civil War for three years as a private in Company C, 26th Pennsylvania Infantry and for three months as first lieutenant in the 4th Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment. He served in 13 engagements during the war including

Second Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...

, Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, the Wilderness and

Spotsylvania Court House The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes more simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania (or the 19th-century spelling Spottsylvania), was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Maj. Gen. George G. Meade's 1864 ...

Career

In 1855, Cooper founded the Media Advertiser newspaper. In 1856, the name was changed to the Media Advertiser and Delaware County American and again in 1859 to the Delaware County American. Cooper served as a delegate to the

1860 Republican National Convention The 1860 Republican National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met May 16-18 in Chicago, Illinois. It was held to nominate the Republican Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1860 election. The conven ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and had a pivotal role in the nomination of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

. In 1865, Cooper received an appointment from the Secretary of War,

Edwin Stanton Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's management helped organize t ...

, as director of government printing. He became the publisher of the Soldier's Journal but turned down a permanent appointment as director of the Bureau of Military Printing. In 1869, Cooper was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for Delaware County, was defeated in 1871 and reelected in 1872. The following year, Cooper was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate and was reelected continuously until 1889. In 1878, he was president of the Senate. In 1889, Cooper was appointed by President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

as collector of the

Port of Philadelphia The Port of Philadelphia is located on the Delaware River in Philadelphia in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Generally the term applies to the publicly owned marine terminals located within Philadelphia city limits along west bank of the river. Th ...

, and in 1900, he was elected again to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for Delaware County and served until his death in 1909.

Personal life

In 1858, Cooper married Ada F. Turner and together they had six children. Cooper was a member of the George W. Bartram Lodge,

Free and Accepted Masons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

and of the Bradbury Post,

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

. Cooper died in his home in a fire started by his own cigar and was interred at

Media Cemetery Media Cemetery is a historic cemetery established in 1857 in Upper Providence Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Upper Providence Township, Pennsylvania. It is located at 40 Kirk Lane and is 21 acres in size. In 1928, the cemetery merged wit ...

Upper Providence Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania Upper Providence Township is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, located around and north of the borough of Media, and about west of center city Philadelphia. The population was 10,142 at the 2010 census. The township lie ...

Bibliography

American politics (non-partisan) From the Beginning to Date
Fireside Publishing Company, 1892
Campaign of '84
Baird & Dillon, 1884
Pennsylvania's Memorial Days, September 11 and 12, 1889: The 26th Pennsylvania Volunteers
Self-published, 1889

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Thomas Valentine 1835 births 1909 deaths 19th-century American newspaper editors 19th-century American politicians 20th-century American politicians American Freemasons Burials at Media Cemetery Editors of Pennsylvania newspapers Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania Reserves Republican Party Pennsylvania state senators People from Cadiz, Ohio People from Media, Pennsylvania People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War Union Army officers