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James Wilson (20 February 1787 – 17 October 1850) was a journalist and politician who was the paternal grandfather of US president

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

Life and career

Born in

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1787, Wilson emigrated in his youth to the United States. He settled in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, where he found work as a printer in the office of the ''Aurora'', a Jeffersonian newspaper edited by William Duane. He rose to the position of foreman, publisher, and then editor.Guffey, p. 53. Continuing his journalistic career in

Steubenville, Ohio Steubenville is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Ohio River 33 miles west of Pittsburgh, it had a population of 18,161 at the 2020 census. The city's name is derived from Fort Steuben, a 1 ...

, he purchased the ''Western Herald'', which name he changed to ''Western Herald & Steubenville Gazette''. He became involved in state politics, representing Jefferson County in the

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...

in 1816–1817 and 1820–1822. In 1832, he founded the ''Pennsylvania Advocate'', a

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

newspaper which he owned and edited for a year before turning it over to his oldest son William Duane Wilson. Though not a lawyer, James Wilson served for several years as an associate judge for the Jefferson County common pleas court. Wilson died in Steubenville on 17 October 1850 from an attack of

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

. He was elected to the Ohio Journalism Hall of Fame in 1933.

Family

Wilson married Ann Adams in Philadelphia in 1808. Both were of Scotch-Irish origin. They had seven sons and three daughters. The youngest son,

Joseph Ruggles Wilson Joseph Ruggles Wilson Sr. (February 28, 1822 – January 21, 1903) was a prominent Presbyterian theologian and father of President Woodrow Wilson, ''Nashville Banner'' editor Joseph Ruggles Wilson Jr., and Anne E. Wilson Howe. In 1861, as pastor o ...

, born in Steubenville in 1822, was the father of

.Weisenburger, pp. 385, 387

References

Bibliography

* * * * 1787 births 1850 deaths Journalists from Ohio Journalists from Pennsylvania Members of the Ohio House of Representatives American people of Scotch-Irish descent Woodrow Wilson family 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American journalists Deaths from cholera Infectious disease deaths in Ohio Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) People from Ulster {{US-journalist-stub