James Washington SINGLETON, Congress, IL (1811-1892)

SINGLETON, James Washington, a Representative from Illinois; born in Paxton, Frederick County, Va., November 23, 1811; attended Winchester (Va.) Academy; moved to Mount Sterling, Brown County, Ill., in 1834; studied medicine and practiced; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1838 and commenced practice in Mount Sterling; engaged in agricultural pursuits; elected brigadier general of the Illinois Militia in 1844 and took a conspicuous part in the so-called Mormon War; delegate to the State constitutional conventions in 1847 and 1861; member of the State house of representatives 1850-1854; moved to Quincy, Adams County, Ill., in 1854; was again a member of the State house of representatives in 1861; was appointed in 1862 by Governor Yates as a member of the commission to confer with the British and Canadian authorities on the establishment of continuous water communication between the United States and Canada; unsuccessful candidate for election in 1868 to the Forty-first Congress; constructed the Quincy & Toledo and the Quincy, Alton & St. Louis Railroads and served as president of both companies; elected as a Democrat to the Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1879-March 3, 1883); returned to his farm near Quincy, Ill., and engaged in farming; moved to Baltimore, Md., about 1891, and died there on April 4, 1892; interment in Mount Hebron Cemetery, Winchester, Frederick County, Va.

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