Thomas Nelson Wills was an American politician from Arizona. He served a single term in the

Arizona State Senate The Arizona State Senate is part of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature of the US state of Arizona. The Senate consists of 30 members each representing an average of 219,859 constituents (2009 figures). Members serve two-year terms w ...

during the

8th Arizona State Legislature The 8th Arizona State Legislature, consisting of the Arizona State Senate and the Arizona House of Representatives, was constituted from January 1, 1927, to December 31, 1928, during the first and second years of George W. P. Hunt's sixth tenure ...

, holding one of the two seats from

Pima County Pima County ( ) is a county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,043,433, making it Arizona's second-most populous county. The county seat is Tucson, where most of the population ...

. He served several terms as a member of the Pinal County Board of Supervisors, and two terms as the Pinal County Sheriff. In his younger years, he worked rodeos, and was a member of

Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but he lived for several years in ...

Biography

Wills was born in

Mariposa County, California Mariposa County () is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 17,131. The county seat is Mariposa. It is located in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, north of Fresno, east of ...

on January 17, 1866. He moved to

Agua Caliente, Arizona Agua Caliente in Maricopa County, Arizona on the border with Yuma County, is a place north of the Gila River near Hyder, Arizona. Named 'Santa Maria del Agua Caliente' in 1744 by Father Jacob Sedelmayer. In 1775, Father Francisco Garces used th ...

in 1883. As a young man he traveled, following rodeos around the country and in 1893 performed in a wild west show at the Chicago World Fair, and was also in

. He married Elizabeth C. Chamberlain of San Pedro in 1896. In 1900 he began the first of two consecutive terms on the

Pinal County Pinal County is in the central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. According to the 2020 census, the population of the county was 425,264, making it Arizona's third-most populous county. The county seat is Florence. The county was founded in 187 ...

Board of Supervisors. He would serve another four consecutive terms as a supervisor from 1910 to 1918. From 1906 to 1910 he served as the Pinal County Sheriff. In 1910 he was a member of the State Constitutional Convention. He was a cattleman by vocation, and owned several ranches over the years, including the Tom Brown Ranch on the San Pedro River, and the Interocean Ranch. Wills died on June 23, 1940, at his home in

Tucson, Arizona , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...

from a heart attack. He had retired from ranching in 1934 and moved to Tucson, and had been in ill health for two years prior to his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, Thomas N. Democratic Party Arizona state senators Arizona pioneers Wild West show performers People from Mariposa County, California People from Maricopa County, Arizona Politicians from Tucson, Arizona