Cole served as Mayor of St. Louis, Missouri from 1869 to 1871, was president of the Merchants' Exchange in 1876 and was elected a Republican to the United States House of Representatives in 1876, serving from 1877 to 1879, being unsuccessful for re-election in 1878.
Cole served as the mayor of St. Louis, Missouri from 1869 to 1871, and later became president of the Merchants' Exchange in 1876. He was also elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1876, where he represented the Republican party from 1877 to 1879, but lost his bid for re-election in 1878.