Daniel Bradley (politician)
Daniel Bradley (March 17, 1833 – February 23, 1908) was an American politician from New York. He was born in Derry, Ireland, attended a parochial school, and moved to the United States in 1850. He settled in Brooklyn and worked as a tobacconist, then sold stoves and tinware. During the Civil War, he served as a captain in the 14th Regiment of the New York National Guard. After the war he worked in real estate and insurance.
Bradley was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1874 on a ticket that combined Democrats and Independents. He was a “Soft Shell” Democrat, opposed to slavery and in the more liberal wing of the party. His election split Brooklyn’s Democratic Party into rival groups, with Bradley and the “Hard Shell” faction led by John J. Vanderbilt on the other side. The Brooklyn Eagle noted a sharp contrast between them. He was re-elected twice and became known as a fighter against graft, earning the nickname “Honest Dan.”
In 1893 he was elected to the New York State Senate as a Reform Democrat in a contentious race. His opponent, William Van Slooten, was tied to the powerful McLaughlin machine. Bradley used the slogan “Who is Van Slooten?” He took office in 1894 as the Senate’s youngest member, though he was about sixty. One of his early ideas was to fix salaries for senators to curb graft from contractors and special interests.
Bradley participated in the Lexow Committee investigations in 1894, which examined corruption. He was a devout Catholic, active at the Church of the Assumption in Brooklyn, involved with the Catholic Benevolent Legion, and served on the Board of Managers of the Catholic Orphan Society. He and his wife, Julia Duane, had three daughters and two sons. His daughter Catherine married inventor Thomas E. Murray, and they raised eight children in Brooklyn.
Bradley died at the home of his son-in-law, Thomas E. Murray Jr., in Brooklyn after four weeks of illness.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 05:05 (CET).