His father removed with his family to Michigan and from there to Iowa in 1843, locating in Davis County. Here the son began the practice of law at Bloomfield where he was also the editor of a weekly paper for a few years before the Civil War. He enlisted soon after the opening of the Rebellion, in Company G, Second Iowa Infantry, and was commissioned first lieutenant. Mr. Weaver was in the battles of Fort Donelson and Shiloh and was promoted to major of the regiment for gallant conduct. Soon after the Battle of Corinth he was promoted to colonel and remained in command of the regiment until its term of service expired. He was brevetted Brigadier-General in March, 1864. In 1865 he was one of the prominent candidates for the nomination for Lieutenant-Governor in the Republican State Convention, receiving next to the highest vote. In 1866 he was elected District Attorney in the Second Judicial District, serving four years. In 1867 he was appointed by President Johnson, Assessor of Internal Revenue for the First District, serving six years. In 1875 he was a candidate before the Republican State Convention for Governor. He received strong support and on the morning of the convention it was generally conceded that he would be nominated. He was an active and outspoken advocate of prohibition and the rigid enforcement of the prohibitory liquor law, which aroused the bitter opposition of the license men. They saw that he was about to be nominated and secretly organized a movement to bring out the name of Samuel J. Kirkwood the “old war Governor” as the only way to defeat General Weaver. The Ex-Governor was not present and when communicated with declined to be made a candidate. But the license men were not to be turned from their course and in a dramatic manner presented the Governor's name in an adroit speech and in a prearranged plan had tremendous cheering started for Governor Kirkwood which swept the convention and thus the nomination was at the last moment diverted from General Weaver. Soon after he left the Republican party and became one of the leaders of the National, or better known as the “Greenback” party. In 1878 he was nominated by the new party for Representative in Congress in the Sixth District and after a warm campaign was elected over the Republican candidate. In 1880 he was nominated by the National Convention of the new party for President of the United States. He received about 350,000 votes. In 1884 General Weaver was again elected to Congress from the Sixth District and reëlected in 1886 by a coalition of the opposition to the Republican candidate. In 1892 General Weaver was again nominated for President, this time by the People's party. At the election he received 1,042,531 votes and twenty-two electoral votes. General Weaver has for many years given most of his time to the advocacy of his political views and has long been one of the ablest among the national speakers and managers of his party.
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