Moritz Nathan Becker (February 2, 18271906) was a

German American German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unit ...

immigrant,

produce Produce is a generalized term for many farm-produced crops, including fruits and vegetables ( grains, oats, etc. are also sometimes considered ''produce''). More specifically, the term ''produce'' often implies that the products are fresh and ...

dealer, and politician. He self-identified as a "Progressive Democrat", then "Liberal Democrat", while serving two terms in the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms ...

during the 1870s.

Background

Becker was born in Gaugrehweiler,

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German E ...

on February 2, 1827. He received an

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

education, and became a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a ...

of cavalry in the

Bavarian Army The Bavarian Army was the army of the Electorate (1682–1806) and then Kingdom (1806–1919) of Bavaria. It existed from 1682 as the standing army of Bavaria until the merger of the military sovereignty (''Wehrhoheit'') of Bavaria into that of ...

, and fought in

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sc ...

during the

First Schleswig War The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswig, ...

. He came to the United States in 1850, lived in

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for two years, then moved to Milwaukee in 1852. In 1859, he became a member of the Milwaukee synagogue B'ne Jeshurun when his own Congregation Ansche Emmeth merged with it. He became an active member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. In 1863 he married Minnie Gutman (1840 - 1902), a native of

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; by 1881, they would have five children.

Public office

For two years Becker was a police

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

in Milwaukee. In 1871 he was elected unopposed to the Assembly's 9th

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district (the 9th

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

of the City of Milwaukee) as a "Progressive Democrat", succeeding Democrat John L. Semmann. He was assigned to the

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

assessment Assessment may refer to: Healthcare *Health assessment, identifies needs of the patient and how those needs will be addressed *Nursing assessment, gathering information about a patient's physiological, psychological, sociological, and spiritual s ...

and collection of

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. In 1872 Becker was re-elected from the same district, which had added Milwaukee's new 10th Ward, this time as a "Liberal Democrat", with 1,006 votes to 518 for Republican George H. Walther. He was assigned to the committees on ways and means, and on state affairs. By September 1873, he was officially part of the Liberal Reform Party, a short-lived coalition of Democrats, reform and

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Republicans, and Grangers formed in 1873, which secured the election of a

Governor of Wisconsin The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's army and air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Wiscon ...

and a number of state legislators. He was not a candidate for re-election himself, and was succeeded by Semmann (who defeated a Reform candidate).

After the Assembly

From 1875-77, Becker was a

deputy sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

for Milwaukee County. He later found employment at the Pleasant Valley Distillery in Milwaukee. In 1888, he was Vice-President of a lodge of the

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

fraternal order Kesher Shel Barzel. As of 1893, the Beckers were both still living in Milwaukee. In 1899, he was elected Secretary of a local

B'nai Brith B'nai B'rith International (, from he, בְּנֵי בְּרִית, translit=b'né brit, lit=Children of the Covenant) is a Jewish service organization. B'nai B'rith states that it is committed to the security and continuity of the Jewish peopl ...

chapter."B'ne Brith Notes: Gilead Lodge 41" ''The Menorah: A Monthly Magazine for the Jewish Home'' Volume 26, No. 2 (February 1899); p. 132

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Moritz American food industry business executives Bavarian emigrants to the United States Businesspeople from Milwaukee Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Military personnel of Bavaria Politicians from Milwaukee People from the Palatinate (region) Wisconsin Reformers (19th century) 19th-century American politicians 1827 births Year of death missing