Joseph H. Walker

Who was Joseph H. Walker?

Joseph Henry Walker was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts. He was born in Boston on December 21, 1829. He moved with his parents to Hopkinton and to Worcester. He attended the public schools and engaged in the manufacture of boots and shoes. He was a member of the common council of Worcester 1852-1854; Walker established the business of manufacturing leather in Chicago, Illinois in 1868.

He served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, and was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-first and to the four succeeding Congresses. He served as Chairman of the Committee on Banking and Currency. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1898 to the Fifty-sixth Congress. Walker resumed his former business pursuits, and died in Worcester on April 3, 1907. His interment was in the Rural Cemetery. Walker Hall at Worcester Academy is named in his honor and service to the Academy.