Though Daniel William Peery was born in Missouri, he often heard his family talk about relatives who were teaching in the Indian Territory. Excited by tales of the boomer movement and the opening of the Unassigned Lands, Peery made the great Land Run to Oklahoma City in 1889 and became active as a politician in the area, where he joined several friends in organizing a local Democratic Club. Peery was soon elected to the Territorial Legislature in 1890 and later fought for removal of the state capital from Guthrie to Oklahoma City. Peery launched into the newspaper business when he moved to El Reno and founded the El Reno Globe. He played a role in organizing the Carnegie Townsite Company, where he later lived, and was among the founding members and served as secretary of the Oklahoma Historical Society. In 1920 he served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.