John Allen Sterling (February 1, 1857 – October 17, 1918) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, and brother of

Thomas Sterling Thomas Sterling (February 21, 1851August 26, 1930) was an American lawyer, politician, and academic who served as a member of the United States Senate and the first dean of the University of South Dakota College of Law. A Republican, he serv ...

Early life and education

Born to Charles Sterling (1821-1905) and Anna Kessler (1827-1908) near Le Roy in

McLean County, Illinois McLean County is the largest county by land area in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 169,572. Its county seat is Bloomington. McLean County is included in the Bloomington–Normal, IL Metropolita ...

, Sterling attended the public schools, and graduated from the

Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockfor ...

in Bloomington in 1881. He was

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

of the public schools of

Lexington, Illinois Lexington is a city in McLean County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,090 at the 2020 census. There are two theories regarding the etymology of the city name. One says it was named for the Battle of Lexington, where General Gridley' ...

(now Lexington Community Unit School District 7) from 1881 to 1883.Entry in ''

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress The ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'' (Bioguide) is a biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress and its predecessor, the Continental Congress. Also included are Delegates from ...

''. Accessed 2008-11-01. (see external links)

Career

He studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in December 1884, and commenced law practice in Bloomington. He was the

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...

of McLean County from 1892 to 1896, and a member of the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

state central committee from 1896-1898. Sterling was elected as a

to the Fifty-eighth through Sixty-second Congresses (March 4, 1903–March 3, 1913). He was one of the managers appointed by the House of Representatives in 1912 to conduct the

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

proceedings against

Robert W. Archbald Robert Wodrow Archbald (September 10, 1848 – August 19, 1926), known as R. W. Archbald, was a United States circuit judge of the United States Commerce Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and the United States Circ ...

, judge of the

United States Commerce Court The Commerce Court of the United States was a short-lived federal trial court. It was created by the Mann-Elkins Act in 1910 and abolished three years later.Urgent Deficiency Act, 63rd Congress, 1st session, ch. 32, , October 22, 1913. Effective ...

. He lost re-election to the Sixty-third Congress, but was re-elected to the Sixty-fourth and Sixty-fifth Congresses and served from March 4, 1915 until his death near

Pontiac, Illinois Pontiac is a city in Livingston County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,931 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Livingston County. The town is also the setting of the 1984 movie ''Grandview, U.S.A.'' Geography Location P ...

, as the result of an automobile accident on October 17, 1918.

Death

He was interred in

Park Hill Cemetery A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. N ...

Bloomington, Illinois Bloomington is a city and the county seat of McLean County, Illinois, United States. It is adjacent to the town of Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington ...

References

External links

* *
John A. Sterling, late a representative from Illinois, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1920
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sterling, John Allen 1857 births 1918 deaths People from McLean County, Illinois Illinois lawyers Illinois Wesleyan University alumni District attorneys in Illinois School superintendents in Illinois Road incident deaths in Illinois Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois 19th-century American politicians People from Bloomington, Illinois Educators from Illinois 19th-century American lawyers

Early life and education

Career

Death

See also

References

External links