Daniel Brooks graduated from Samford University with a degree in history and received a master of arts from Samford University in 1984. His thesis title was “The Mind of Wilcox County: An Antebellum History, 1819–1861.” Before becoming director of Birmingham’s Arlington House Museum and Gardens in 1985, Brooks taught in the Vestavia Hills and Homewood school systems. He has been active in Alabama’s historical circles, serving as president of the Alabama Historical Association and the Wilcox Historical Society and as an advisory board member for the Alabama Historical Commission. He retired from the Arlington House in 2010. Brooks now makes his home in Lowndesboro, Alabama, but he continues teaching his antiques course at Samford University as he has for a number of years.