Born in Cable County, Va., now West Va., on July 11, 1813. He came with his father to Illinois when a boy and settled in Vermillion county. When the Black Hawk war broke out he volunteered and served one month, the full time for which he had enlisted. He next went to Wisconsin with a surveying party and afterward worked in the lead mines and smelters, and also freighted with an ox team, to Galena, Illinois, Dodgeville. and Prairie du Chien. He was personally acquainted with Gen Henry Dodge and Isaac P. Walker the first two U. S. senators of Wisconsin, and drove an ox team with a son of the former, A. C. Dodge. who, after had the honor of being with Geo. W. Jones, the first U. S. senator of Iowa. After Iowa was organized as separate territory, Mr. Wilson crossed the Mississippi river and settled in Lee county. It was here he met his future wife, Miss Mahala Harper, to whom he was married in 1841. Although never thirsting for political honors, he filled many minor offices and was elected to the lower house to represent Lee county in the general assembly of the state in 1849 when the capitol was located at Iowa City. In politics he was always a democrat. He never belonged to any church, the reason being, perhaps, that he could not conscientiously subscribe to the numerous dogmas prescribed by the different denominations.
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