James Shields (April 13, 1762August 13, 1831) was a one-term

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

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, serving from 1829 to 1831.

Biography

A descendant of the Ó Siadhail family, Shields was born in

Banbridge Banbridge ( , ) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road and is named after a bridge built over the River Bann in 1712. It is situated in the civil parish of Seapatrick and the historic barony of Iv ...

, County Down in the Kingdom of Ireland. He received a good common-school education, entering the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

in 1782 and graduated in 1786. He attended medical college for two years, before emigrating to the United States in July 1791 and settled in

Frederick County, Virginia Frederick County is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,419. Its county seat is Winchester. The county was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. It is Virginia's northernmost county ...

, where he taught school. He moved to

Butler County, Ohio Butler County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 390,357. Its county seat is Hamilton. It is named for General Richard Butler, who died in 1791 during St. Clair' ...

in 1801, but then returned to

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and became a citizen of the United States in 1804.

Political career

He returned to Ohio in 1807 and was a member of 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 Ch ...

between 1806 and 1827 and was an

elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of ...

for

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

in 1828. Taylor 1899, p. 145 He was elected as a Jacksonian to the 21st United States Congress (March 4, 1829 – March 3, 1831).

Death

Shields was killed through the accidental overturning of a stagecoach near

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

, Butler County, Ohio on August 13, 1831. He was interred in Venice Cemetery, Venice, Ohio. He was the uncle of U.S. Senator James Shields.

References

* 1762 births 1831 deaths 18th-century Irish people 19th-century Irish people Alumni of the University of Glasgow Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio 19th-century American politicians Members of the Ohio House of Representatives People from Banbridge People from Butler County, Ohio Politicians from County Down Road incident deaths in Ohio 1828 United States presidential electors {{Ohio-Representative-stub