James O'Neill (May 4, 1810 – March 28, 1882) was a Wisconsin settler, jurist, and sawmill owner.
He was born in
Lisbon, New York
Lisbon is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 4,102 at the 2010 census.
By some accounts, the town is named after Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. However, the 1810 US Census for the town shows the town' ...
and worked in lumber in Canada and New York. He also worked on riverboats on the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
.
The community of
Neillsville was named in his honor, as was O'Neill Creek, which runs through the center of the city and drains into the Black River. He arrived in the area around 1845, looking for a location to build a sawmill along the Black River.
In 1854, ''O’Neill’s Mill'', (as Neillsville was originally called), was selected as the county seat of
Clark County.
O'Neill served as treasurer of Clark County in 1861-1865 and on the Clark County Board of Supervisors serving as chairman. He served in the
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin.
Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...
in 1849 and 1868. He owned a lumber business and hotel in Neillsville until his death.
His nephew was
James O'Neill who was a judge and served in the Wisconsin State Assembly.
He died on March 28, 1882, and is buried in Neillsville City Cemetery.
''Marshfield News Herald''
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See also
*History of Wisconsin
The history of Wisconsin encompasses the story not only of the people who have lived in Wisconsin since it became a state of the U.S., but also that of the Native American tribes who made their homeland in Wisconsin, the French and British coloni ...
Notes
People from Lisbon, New York
People from Neillsville, Wisconsin
Businesspeople from Wisconsin
Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly
County supervisors in Wisconsin
County officials in Wisconsin
Wisconsin state court judges
History of Wisconsin
1810 births
1882 deaths
19th-century American legislators
19th-century American businesspeople
19th-century American judges
American hoteliers
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