John E. Raker
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John Edward Raker (February 22, 1863 – January 22, 1926) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a Democratic member of the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, serving eight terms from 1911 to 1926.


Life

Raker was born near Knoxville,
Knox County, Illinois Knox County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 49,967. Its county seat is Galesburg, Illinois, Galesburg. Knox County comprises the ...
, on February 22, 1863, and moved with his parents, Christian Raker and Mary E. (née Rambo) Raker, to
Lassen County, California Lassen County ( ) is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,730, and was estimated to be 28,340 in 2024, Its county seat and the largest city is Susanville ...
, in 1873. After attending public school and the state normal school at San Jose (now
San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...
) from 1882 to 1884, he studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1885 and began practicing law in Susanville. In 1886 he moved to Alturas, in Modoc County.


Political career

Raker was
District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
of Modoc County from 1895 to 1899, and was an unsuccessful candidate for the
California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...
in 1898. He served as Judge of the Modoc County Superior Court from January 5, 1903, to December 19, 1910, when he resigned, having been elected to Congress. He was chairman of the Democratic State Central Committee from 1908 to 1910, and was a delegate to the
Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...
at
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
in 1908. Elected as a Democrat to the Sixty-second Congress in 1910, and to the seven succeeding Congresses, he served from March 4, 1911, until his death in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, on January 22, 1926. His district was numbered the 1st from 1911 to 1913, and the 2nd from 1913 to 1926. In 1911, he tried unsuccessfully to introduce legislation for the creation of the
Redwood National and State Parks The Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) are a complex of one United States national park and three California state parks located along the coast of northern California. The combined RNSP contain Redwood National Park, Del Norte Coast Red ...
. In stark contrast, he was the main sponsor of what came to be known as the
Raker Act The Raker Act was an act of the United States Congress that permitted building of the O'Shaughnessy Dam and flooding of Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park, California. It is named for John E. Raker, its chief sponsor. The Act, passed ...
, passed in 1913 and signed into law by President
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...
in 1914. The Act authorized the damming of the Tuolumne River and the flooding of the Hetch Hetchy Valley, which remain controversial to this day. Still, Raker also introduced the legislation that created
Lassen Volcanic National Park Lassen Volcanic National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in northeastern California. The dominant feature of the park is Lassen Peak, the largest lava dome, plug dome volcano in the wo ...
in 1916. In the Sixty-fifth Congress, he chaired the
Committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...
on Expenditures in the
Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
and the Committee on Woman Suffrage.


Private life

Raker married Iva G. Spencer on November 21, 1889. He was a member of the
Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...
s and the
Odd Fellows Odd Fellows (or Oddfellows when referencing the Grand United Order of Oddfellows or some British-based fraternities; also Odd Fellowship or Oddfellowship) is an international fraternity consisting of lodges first documented in 1730 in 18th-cen ...
. He is buried at Susanville Cemetery in Susanville, California.


See also

*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49) There are several lists of United States Congress members who died in office. These include: *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899) *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–1949) *List ...


References

;Attribution *


External links


Political Graveyard entry
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Raker, John Edward Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California 1863 births 1926 deaths People from Knoxville, Illinois People from Susanville, California District attorneys in California San Jose State University alumni 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives