John Warren Cooke (February 28, 1915 – November 28, 2009) was an

American politician In the United States, politics functions within a framework of a constitutional federal democratic republic with a presidential system. The three distinct branches share powers: Congress, which forms the legislative branch, a bicameral legis ...

and

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

publisher Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, he served in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

1942–1980 and was its

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

from 1968 until his retirement.

Personal life; non-political career

Cooke was born in

Mathews, Virginia Mathews is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Mathews County, Virginia, United States.

, to Giles Buckner Cooke and the former Katharine Grosh. His father, an

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United States ...

minister, had been a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

, serving on the personal staff of

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

.Jamerson, p. 143 Attending both public and private schools, Cooke graduated from Lee-Jackson High School in Mathews. He spent one year at the

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

, then went to work for the

Mathews County Mathews County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,533. Its county seat is Mathews. Located on the Middle Peninsula, Mathews County is included in the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport ...

government, serving as clerk of the county

school board A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...

, among other tasks. Cooke married Anne Brown Rawn of

Huntington, West Virginia Huntington is a city in Cabell County, West Virginia, Cabell and Wayne County, West Virginia, Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The County seat, seat of Cabell County, the city is located at the confluence of the Ohio River, O ...

on May 10, 1947. They had a son and a daughter.

Career

Cooke was president of Tidewater Newspapers, Inc. in

Gloucester, Virginia Gloucester Courthouse ( ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Gloucester County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,951 at the 2010 census. History The Gloucester County Courthouse Square Historic District, ...

and published the '' Gloucester-Mathews Gazette-Journal'' newspaper from 1954 until March 2009. Cooke was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1941, representing Mathews and

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

Counties on the

Middle Peninsula The Middle Peninsula is the second of three large peninsulas on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. To the north the Rappahannock River separates it from the Northern Neck peninsula. To the south the York River separates it from th ...

. The seat had been briefly held by

James Bland Martin James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince James ...

, and before that for many years by John Tabb DuVal of Gloucester County, although for four years (1929-1933) it had been held by Emma Lee Smith White of Mathews, and Cooke later said that until postwar redistricting, an informal understanding had been that a person from Gloucester County would serve two terms, then allow someone from Mathews County to hold the office.Martha W. McCarney, Mathews County Virginia: Lost Landscapes, Untold Stories MathewsCounty Historical Society 2015) p. 495 cites a 1992 oral history In 1944, Middlesex County was added to the district. That same year, he became secretary of the House Democratic caucus. Cooke was an alternate delegate to the

1948 Democratic National Convention The 1948 Democratic National Convention was held at Philadelphia Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 12 to July 15, 1948, and resulted in the nominations of President Harry S. Truman for a full term and Senator Alben W. ...

. He became Democratic caucus leader in 1950 and majority floor leader in 1956. In 1965, Charles City and New Kent Counties on the

Virginia Peninsula The Virginia Peninsula is the natural landform located in southeast Virginia outlined by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay. It is sometimes known as the ''Lower Peninsula'' to distinguish it from two other penins ...

were added to the district. Cooke was elected House Speaker on January 10, 1968, replacing the retiring E. Blackburn Moore. That year he co-sponsored the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. In 1971 Cooke's district changed one more time, dropping Charles City and New Kent Counties and adding

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, King and Queen and

King William King William may refer to: People Bimbia * William I of Bimbia * William II of Bimbia () Britain and Ireland * William of England (disambiguation), multiple kings * William I, King of Scots (–1214), also known as William the Lion German Empir ...

Counties. Cooke retired in 1979.

Death and legacy

Cooke died on November 28, 2009, at his home in Mathews County at the age of 94.

Notes

References

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External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooke, John Warren 1915 births 2009 deaths Speakers of the Virginia House of Delegates Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Virginia Military Institute alumni People from Mathews, Virginia 20th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly