Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1914-11-14
Represented Illinois, Minnesota
and Missouri i'm the Upper.
House.
Was With Gen. Scott When He
Captured the City of
Mexico.
BORN in TYRONE, IRELAND

The statue erected In the COurb
House yard at Carrollton, Missouri,
to the memory of Gen. James
Shields, the only man who ever
represented three States-Illinois.
Minnesota and Missouri-in the
United States Senate, was unveiled
on Thursday with elaborate and I'M
pressive ceremonies. The statue was
erected with an appropriation OF
$4,000 passed by the last Missouri
Legislature, through the efforts OF
State Senator William G.. Busby. The
Governor appointed the following
named Carrollton citizens as a COM
mittee to select the statue and
superintend its erection: H. G.
Brown, II. ]. Wilcoxson and Edward
A. Dickinson.
The committee selected the model
made by Frederick G.. Hibbard, of
Chicago, and let the contract to him
for $4,000. The statue is eight and
one-half feet high on base nine and
one-half feet high, making a total
height of eighteen feet.
The unveiling ceremonies rivaled
even those of last year at the unveil-
ing of the monument over the grave
of Gen. Shields in st. Mary's ceme-
terry in Carrollton. Special trains
carried people from several States,
including detachment Of Federal
troops stationed at Fort Leaven-
worth, Kas.
A statue of Gen. Shields was un-
yelled October 20 in the new Capitol
of Minnesota at St. Paul, it being a
duplicate of the one unveiled in Car
rollton.
Gen. James Shields was born in
County Tyrone, Ireland, May 10,
1910, and died in Ottumwa, Iowa.
June 1, 1879. In 1925 at the agel
of sixteen he came to America andN
in 1892 began the study of law iD
Randolph county, Illinois, where he
was admitted to the bar. In 1885
he was elected to the Illinois Legis-
lature from Randolph county.
In "Old Vandalia," then the capi-
tai of the State, he made the ac-
quaintance of Abraham Lincoln,
Stephen A. Douglas and others who
have since become prominent in the
history of the country. In 1S40 he
was elected State Auditor of Illinois
and discharged the duties of that
important position with such eff
cheney and success that he was
unanimously reelected by both par
ties, Wings and Democrats.
In 1916 Gen. Shields was APP
pointed Judge of the Supreme Court
of the State, in which office he
served until appointed Commissioner
of the General Land office by Presi-
dent Polk. When the Mexican war
broke out he offered his services to
the Government and was assigned to
the command of the Illinois troops
as Brigadier General. He served
under Gen. Taylor on the Rio
Grande, under Gen. Wood In the
campaign against Chihuahua, and
under Gen. Scott when he entered on
his campaign in the capture OF the
city of Mexico.
A grape shot punctured Gen.
Shields right lung, tore through his
body and passed out near the spine.
In the official dispatches to the War
office he was reported dead. To the
surprise of everybody and to the
astonishment of the medical staff OF
the army, in ten weeks he was again
in the saddle and at the head OF his
command. In the storming OF
Chapultepec he was again seriously
wounded when his arm was struck
by a musket ball. At the end Of the
war he returned to his home in
Illinois.
In 1S49 Illinois made him Senator
of the United States, he and Douglas
being colleagues. He served six
years with Webster, Calhoun, Clay,
Benson and Cass. After his term in
the Senate expired he moved to Min
nesota, then a Territory, which on
being admitted to the Union chose
Shields as one of it's Senators.
The climate of Minnesota proving
too severe, on the expiration OF his
term as Senator he made trip to
California, where he married. While
on the Pacific coast the civil war
broke out and he again offered his
services to his adopted country. He
was again appointed Brigadier Gem
eral and telegraphed for by the War
Department. being assigned TO the
command of the army OF West vir-
ginia.
In 1866 he returned from the
West and selected Missouri as his
home On January 21. 1879. he was
chosen by the Missouri Legislature
TO fiji the unexpired term OF l.. v.
Bogy In the United States Senate.
thus comforting upon him the honor
or being the only man who ever
represented three different States In
fha YTnitad Cfafav Couoto