 james wilson grimes (october 20, 1816february 7, 1872) was an american politician, serving as the third governor of iowa and a united states senator from iowa. ==biography== born in deering, new hampshire, grimes graduated from hampton academy and attended dartmouth college. he studied law, moved west and commenced practice in a settlement in 'black hawk purchase', wisconsin territory, that was later incorporated as burlington, iowa. he also farmed. grimes served as a member of the iowa territorial house of representatives for 18381839 and 18431844 terms. he served as governor of iowa from 1854 to 1858. while elected as a whig in 1854, he was a guiding light in the republican party's establishment in iowa in 1855 and 1856.cyrenus cole, "a history of the people of iowa," p. 310-12 (torch press 1921). ===u.s. senate=== grimes was elected as a republican to the u.s. senate in 1859 and reelected in 1865. he served in the senate from march 4, 1859, until december 6, 1869, when he resigned due to ill health. in the senate, he served as chairman of the committee on the district of columbia (in the 37th and 38th congresses), and the committee on naval affairs (in the 39th through 41st congresses). he also served on the joint committee on reconstruction which drafted the fourteenth amendment to the united states constitution. in 1861 grimes was a member of the peace convention held in washington, d.c., in an effort to devise means to prevent the impending [[americ
1816_births 1872_deaths American_Congregationalists American_people_of_English_descent American_people_of_Scotch-Irish_descent Dartmouth_College_alumni Governors_of_Iowa Iowa_Republicans Iowa_Whigs Iowa_lawyers Members_of_the_Iowa_Territorial_Legislature People_from_Burlington,_Iowa People_from_Hillsborough_County,_New_Hampshire People_of_Iowa_in_the_American_Civil_War Union_political_leaders United_States_Senators_from_Iowa Whig_Party_state_governors_of_the_United_States