lawyer, businessman, politician, railroad promoter, b. Dublin, Ireland. He migrated to the U.S. with his parents as a child, settling in Utica, N.Y. He studied law in Chicago. In 1836 he moved to Milwaukee where he served briefly as editor of the Milwaukee Advertiser. In 1837 he was admitted to the bar and began to practice law. A Democrat, he was private secretary to Territorial Governor Henry Dodge (q.v.) (1836), a member of the territorial council (1842-1844), and mayor of Milwaukee (1852). He was prominently identified with the promotion and development of early Wisconsin railroads and acted for several years as receiver of the La Crosse & Milwaukee before it became part of the Milwaukee and St. Paul. He was for many years confidential adviser to Alexander Mitchell (q.v.) in matters pertaining to the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company and other business enterprises. He served as a director or officer of many large Wisconsin corporations. He was a director of the Milwaukee Lyceum (1840) and vice-president of the Wisconsin Agricultural Society (1861). J. G. Gregory, ed., S. E. Wis. (4 vols., Chicago, 1932); J. A. Watrous, Memoirs of Milwaukee Co. (2 vols., Madison, 1909); B. Still, Milwaukee (Madison, 1948); Milwaukee Evening Wis., Mar. 18, 1889; Milwaukee Sentinel, Mar. 17, 1889; WPA MS.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Hans Crocker Papers for details.

View newspaper clippings at Wisconsin Local History and Biography Articles.

Learn More

Dictionary of Wisconsin History

Explore more than 1,600 people, places and events in Wisconsin history.

[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]