James Lisle Gillis (October 2, 1792 – July 8, 1881) was a

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from Pennsylvania.

Biography

James L. Gillis was born in

Hebron, New York Hebron is a town in Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town population was 1,773 at the 2000 census. The town is named after the same-named community in Connecticut. Geogra ...

. He attended the public schools and became a

tanner Tanner may refer to: * Tanner (occupation), the tanning of leather and hides People * Tanner (given name), * Tanner (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *The Tanner Sisters, also referred to as "The Harbingers of Weir ...

. He served in the cavalry during the War of 1812. In July 1814, Gillis participated in the

Battle of Chippawa The Battle of Chippawa, also known as the Battle of Chippewa, was a victory for the United States Army in the War of 1812, during its invasion on July 5, 1814, of the British Empire's colony of Upper Canada along the Niagara River. This battle a ...

and was wounded at the

Battle of Lundy's Lane The Battle of Lundy's Lane, also known as the Battle of Niagara, was a battle fought on 25 July 1814, during the War of 1812, between an invading American army and a British and Canadian army near present-day Niagara Falls, Ontario. It was one o ...

. Two weeks later, he was captured and held as a prisoner of war in Canada until November 1814. Gillis escaped just prior to being sent by ship to England, but was soon recaptured and held at Halifax, Nova Scotia until the end of the war in February 1815. Gillis moved to Ridgway, Pennsylvania, in 1822, and was appointed associate judge of

Jefferson County, Pennsylvania Jefferson County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,492. Its county seat is Brookville. The county was established on March 26, 1804, from part of Lycoming County and later organized ...

, by Governor

David R. Porter David Rittenhouse Porter (October 31, 1788 – August 6, 1867) was the ninth governor of Pennsylvania. Voted into office during the controversial 1838 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, which was characterized by intense anti-Masonic and anti- ...

. He was a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

in 1840 and 1851. He was one of the judges of Jefferson County in 1842, and a member of the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered ev ...

in 1845. Gillis also served as a mail agent in San Francisco, California. Gillis was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-fifth Congress. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in

1858 Events January–March * January – **Benito Juárez (1806–1872) becomes Liberal President of Mexico. At the same time, conservatives install Félix María Zuloaga (1813–1898) as president. **William I of Prussia becomes regent f ...

. He was appointed

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

for the Pawnee Tribe of Indians. He died in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, in 1881. Interment in Forest Home Cemetery. Gillis married Mary Brockden Ridgway in 1816. They had two sons and a daughter. After his first wife's death in 1826, he remarried with Cecilia Ann Berray. They had four sons and three daughters, including U.S. Navy officer

James Henry Gillis James Henry Gillis (14 May 1831 – 6 December 1910) was a rear admiral in the United States Navy. His active-duty career extended from the 1850s through the 1890s, including service in the American Civil War. Biography Born in Ridgway, Penn ...

Sources

The Political Graveyard
1792 births 1881 deaths People from Hebron, New York American military personnel of the War of 1812 Politicians from Jefferson County, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania lawyers Pennsylvania state court judges Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Democratic Party Pennsylvania state senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania 19th-century American judges People from Mount Pleasant, Iowa {{Pennsylvania-state-judge-stub