James KNOX, Congress, IL (1807-1876)

KNOX, James, a Representative from Illinois; born in Canajoharie, N.Y., July 4, 1807; attended Hamilton College, Clinton, N.Y., and was graduated from Yale College in 1830; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1833 and commenced practice in Utica, N.Y.; moved to Illinois in 1836 and settled in Knoxville, Knox County; continued the practice of law; also engaged in agricultural pursuits; delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1847; elected as a Whig to the Thirty-third Congress and reelected as an Opposition Party candidate to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1853-March 3, 1857); chairman, Committee on Roads and Canals (Thirty-fourth Congress); continued the practice of law until his death in Knoxville, Ill., October 8, 1876; interment in City Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present