John Peter Altgeld
John Peter Altgeld was an American politician and the 20th governor of Illinois, serving from 1893 until 1897. He was the first Democrat to govern that state since the 1850s, and would remain the only one to do so until the 1920s. A leading figure of the Progressive movement, Altgeld signed workplace safety and child labor laws, pardoned three of the men convicted in the Haymarket Affair, and rejected calls in 1894 to break up the Pullman strike by force. In 1896 he was a leader of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, opposing President Grover Cleveland and the conservative Bourbon Democrats. He was defeated for reelection in 1896 in an intensely fought, bitter campaign.
Born in the Duchy of Nassau, Germany, Altgeld grew up on a farm in the American Midwest. After a short time in the Union Army as a youth, he studied law in Missouri, while working as a manual laborer, and became involved in progressive politics. He eventually opened a law practice in Chicago, becoming a real estate developer, and local judge before being elected governor. After his term as governor, he worked in the law office of Clarence Darrow but, often in poor health throughout his life, died at the age of 54.
Early life
Altgeld was born in the town of Selters in the German Westerwald, the first son of John P. and Mary Altgeld. His parents left Germany when he was three months old, bringing their infant son with them. They settled on a farm near Mansfield, Ohio. He left home at age 16 to join the Union Army; lying about his age, he enlisted in the 164th Ohio Infantry. Altgeld's regiment served in Virginia as a reserve unit, doing labor and reconnaissance, participating in only one skirmish. Altgeld himself nearly died of fever. He then worked on his father's farm, studied in the library of a neighbor and at a private school in Lexington, Ohio, and for two years taught school.After a brief stint in an Ohio seminary, he walked to Missouri and studied to become a lawyer while working on itinerant railroad construction crews. Becoming ill from the climate and the labor, Altgeld wandered to Kansas and Iowa before settling as a teacher and farmhand near Savannah, Missouri. There, he began to read law at a private law firm and was admitted to the Andrew County bar in 1871. He was not educated at any university. The university law school at which he would have studied was not even founded until 1872, one year before Altgeld was admitted to the bar. In Savannah, Altgeld first became involved in politics. He served as city attorney and was elected state's attorney, resigning after one year of a two-year term.
In 1875, Altgeld moved to Chicago hoping to continue his legal career there. He frequently visited his home in Ohio. He was married to Emma Ford, the daughter of John Ford and Ruth Smith, in 1877 in Richland County, Ohio. Their marriage was a happy one by all accounts but produced no children.
Altgeld's practice of law began to show success and he was managing an independent legal practice by 1880. He became wealthy, however, from a series of real estate dealings and development projects, including residential and office properties in Chicago and a streetcar line in Newark, Ohio. His most notable project was the Unity Building, the 16-story office building that was at that time Chicago's tallest building. In January 1890, Altgeld bought a lot at what is now 127 North Dearborn Street in downtown Chicago, and he established the Unity Company to build and manage the future Unity Building. He indiscriminately contributed his own fortune toward the endeavor, and for a while the construction was moving more quickly than expected. However, this led to a $100,000 mistake and much of the framework of the building had to be rebuilt. Altgeld also made an error by trying to borrow $400,000 from John R. Walsh, president of the Jennings Trust Company and of the Chicago National Bank. Technicalities in the contract caused many problems for Altgeld. Eventually, a new contract was signed, but Altgeld was able to borrow only $300,000 from Walsh. He ended up raising the rest of the money himself, and the construction of the Unity Building was completed. In 1893, he declared that the Unity Building had given him the most personal satisfaction of all his achievements.
Altgeld became a millionaire, and would, by the time he ran for governor, own six buildings in Chicago.
Early political career
Altgeld's name, according to historian Philip Dray, "is synonymous with the dawn of the Progressive era." His first public post was city attorney in Savannah, Missouri, in which capacity he rewrote a code of ordinances. In Missouri Altgeld became involved in the Granger movement and the Democratic Party and was elected to be state's attorney for the county in 1874. As Altgeld later wrote, he quickly became disillusioned with the criminal justice system and resigned after just one year.Altgeld decided to run for Congress in 1884 against incumbent George Adams of Illinois's 4th congressional district. That year, he published an essay on penal reform entitled, Our Penal Machinery and Its Victims. His essay argued that rather than reform criminals, incarceration produced hardened criminals. Although this district was heavily Republican, Adams defeated him by just 8 points, a better showing than well-known Democrat Lambert Tree had made two years earlier. As a Republican leader recalled, "He was not elected, but our executive committee was pretty badly frightened by the strong canvass he made."
Altgeld assumed the office of Judge of the Superior Court of Cook County on December 6, 1886.succeeding Judge Rollin S. Williamson. He resigned in August 1891 to pursue private business interests. He was succeeded as a judge by Jonas Hutchinson.
Illinois governorship
, he unsuccessfully challenged John M. Palmer in seeking to have the Illinois General Assembly appoint him to the United States Senate.1892 gubernatorial election
He was drafted by the Democrats to run for Governor of Illinois.One of the obstacles in the way of Altgeld receiving the Democratic nomination was Palmer, still bitter over Altgeld challenging him for Senate in 1891. Viewed as an elder statesman of the party, Palmer's opposition to Altgeld would have carried weight. Altgeld supporter Michael C. McDonald made an empty promise to Palmer that, in turn for not opposing Altgeld's candidacy, Cook County Democrats would support him for the party's presidential nomination in the same year's presidential election.
Altgeld was popular among his fellow German Americans.
The only Chicago newspaper that provided positive coverage of Altgeld was the Chicago Globe, which was run by Michael C. McDonald. Elsewhere in the Chicago press, Altgeld received vilification for his political association with Michael C. McDonald, his liberal sympathies towards the men convicted in the Haymarket Affair, and his alliance with Chicago's Iroquois Club. He was painted as a hazardous radical and a dangerous threat to the state's business and commercial concerns. However, many downstate newspapers provided positive coverage to Altgeld.
Also initially seeking the Democratic nomination was John C. Black. Other potential candidates were dissuaded from running. For instance, State Representative James Cockrell was convinced by Clarence Darrow to abandon his plans of running. However, by February 23, it was reported that Black had withdrawn from the race, leaving Altgeld as the only candidate seeking the Democratic nomination. Altgeld won the Democratic nomination on the first ballot at the state convention in Springfield.
Altgeld's supporters dubbed him, "the poor man's friend".
In the general election he faced popular incumbent Republican governor Joseph W. Fifer.
Altgeld traveled across the state to campaign on a vigorous speaking tour. He attacked Fifer's use of prison labor for state projects, and attacked his school reform record. Fifer did not refute Altgeld's allegations against his record, which helped make them stick in the minds of voters.
To dampen the negative impact that his association with Altgeld would have on Altgeld's electability, particularly among rural downstate voters, Michael C. McDonald temporarily resigned his role on the Cook County Central Committee a month before the election.
Altgeld narrowly defeated Fifer. He was the first Democrat to have been elected governor of Illinois since 1856, the first time a foreign-born citizen had been elected, and the first time a Chicago resident had been elected.