Daniel Hooker
Daniel Darius Hooker was an American molder and tool manufacturer from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who served two terms as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. He was elected as a "Democratic Trades Assembly" candidate in 1882 ; and re-elected in 1884.
Background
Hooker was born in Perryburg, New York, on December 22, 1831, and received a public school education. He came to Wisconsin in 1854 and lived in Fond du Lac until moving in 1868 to Milwaukee. He worked as a molder, and while working at one of Edward P. Allis' plants lost his leg, when a ladle of molten iron was toppled. His wife, Mary Ann Peacock, died in 1872 of tuberculosis; they had three children, Harry C., William Francis and Jennie M. As of 1883 he was a manufacturer of tools.Assembly
Hooker had never been a candidate for office before being elected in 1882 from the 5th Milwaukee County Assembly district, as a "democratic trades assembly" candidate, with 1,054 votes to 943 for Republican D. W. Chipman. He listed his party affiliation as "Trades Assembly" in the Wisconsin Blue Book, and was assigned to the standing committee on state affairs.Hooker was re-elected in 1884, again as a "democratic trades assembly" candidate, drawing 1,869 votes to 1,674 for Republican John Toohey and 59 votes for Prohibitionist Otto Miller. He was now listed as a Democrat, and remained on the state affairs committee.
In 1886, Hooker had become simply a Democrat, and alderman Theodore Rudzinski was the "People's Party" nominee. He unseated Hooker with 1,705 votes to 832 votes for D. W. Chipman, 759 votes for Hooker, and 18 votes for Prohibitionist J. Y. Wolf.
In later years, he was remembered as the "father" of the law requiring fire escapes on large buildings.