Editing Job Adams Cooper (section)

==Early life==
Job Adams Cooper was born in [[Greenville, Illinois]], to Charles and Maria Hadley Cooper, one of seven children. He attended [[Knox College, Illinois|Knox College]] in [[Galesburg, Illinois]], but took a leave of absence to fight in the [[American Civil War]] for the [[Union Army]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_colorado/col2-content/main-content-list/title_cooper_job.html|title= Colorado Governor Job Adams Cooper|publisher= National Governors Association |accessdate= September 25, 2012}}</ref>

Cooper enlisted as a sergeant in the [[137th Illinois Volunteer Infantry]], and was stationed in [[Memphis, Tennessee]], during the Confederate raid on the city by troopers under the command of General [[Nathan Bedford Forrest]]. Following the war, he returned to complete his studies. Upon graduation from Knox College in 1867, he returned to his hometown of Greenville and was admitted to practice law in [[Illinois]].

That same year, Cooper married Jane O. Barnes, the daughter of a prominent minister, and they had four children together. Leaving his family behind in 1872, he accompanied A. C. Phelps on a westward journey hoping to find entrepreneurial opportunities, and eventually settled in [[Denver|Denver, Colorado]], where they started the law firm of Phelps and Cooper. In between 1872 and 1888, Cooper expanded his business interests to include [[insurance]], [[bank]]ing, [[mining]], and the [[cattle]] industry.