John Peter Altgeld

John Peter Altgeld (December 30, 1847 – March 12, 1902) 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.