He came to the United States in 1848 , and changed his German name '' ' Friedrich Kuch ' '' to Frederick Cook . He first lived in Buffalo , New York , and worked for his brother-in-law who was a shoemaker . Then he opened his own butcher shop at Batavia , New York . After that he became a brakeman on the Buffalo and Rochester Railroad , and later a conductor on the New York Central Railroad a position he held for twenty years during which he became wealthy . ( There is a story about this : Asked by Cornelius Vanderbilt how he could buy vast pieces of real estate and live expensively on $ 75 a week , Cook is said to have answered " Oh , I makes ( sic ) my money trading horses with Jockey Mason , " which became something of a proverb at the time . ) In 1872 , he left the railroad , and entered politics . Governor John Thompson Hoffman appointed him Judge Advocate of the 7th Division of the National Guard . In 1874 , he ran for Mayor of Rochester , New York but was defeated by George G. Clarkson while otherwise the whole Democratic ticket was elected . In 1875 , Governor Samuel J. Tilden appointed him Assistant Adjutant General and Chief of Staff of the 7th Division of the National Guard . He was a delegate to the 1876 Democratic National Convention . He was Secretary of State of New York from 1886 to 1889 , elected in 1885 and 1887
1876 Democratic National Convention
1876 Democratic National Convention
Frederick Cook (politician)