Please answer the following question: Facts: - party: republican - predecessor: richard trumbull yates john m. palmer john marshall hamilton lyman - lieutenant: william bross john lourie beveridge john smith - birth date: 25 july 1824 - branch: united states army union army - caption: c. 1875 - order: 14th - death date: 24 april 1899 - office: governor of illinois united states senator from illinois - term end: january 14 , 1889 march 4 , 1879 11 , 1869 january 23 , 1873 january - serviceyears: 1846-18471861-1864 - name: richard james oglesby - death place: elkhart , illinois - birth place: oldham county , kentucky - signature: richard james oglesby signature.svg - successor: john john a. logan m. palmer john lourie beveridge joseph w. fifer - alma mater: university of louisville - battles: mexican -- american war , american civil war - allegiance: united states - term start: january 30 , 1885 march 3 , 1873 16 , 1865 january 13 , 1873 january - image: richard james oglesby - brady-handy . jpg - rank: 35px major general Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of richard j. oglesby .
A:
richard james oglesby -lrb- july 25 , 1824april 24 , 1899 -rrb- was an american soldier and republican politician from illinois .he served in the united states army during the mexican -- american war of 1846-47 , and after the war became a prospector during the california gold rush and was elected to the illinois general assembly .during the american civil war , oglesby volunteered for the union army and rose to the rank of major general , serving in the western theater ; he left the army when he was elected governor of illinois in 1864 , and would serve three non-consecutive terms in that office -lrb- from 1865 to 1869 , for ten days in 1873 , and from 1885 to 1889 -rrb- .he also served as a united states senator from illinois from 1873 to 1879 .the town of oglesby , illinois , is named in his honor .