Richard James Oglesby

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Richard James Oglesby (born July 25, 1824 in Oldham County , Kentucky , † April 24, 1899 in Elkhart , Illinois ) was an American politician and from 1865 to 1869, in 1873 and again from 1885 to 1889 Governor of Illinois. He was also a US Senator for that state .

Early years

After losing his parents early on, Richard Oglesby moved to live with his uncle in Decatur , Illinois. There he attended the local schools. In the meantime he earned his living as a rope maker, carpenter or as an agricultural assistant. He took part in the Mexican-American War , tried his luck in the gold fields in California in 1850 and then toured Europe for two years. He then studied at the Louisville Law School . In 1854 he was admitted to the bar. He then settled in Sullivan as a lawyer.

Political rise and civil war

Politically, he was a member of the Republican Party founded in 1854 . In 1858 he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the US Senate, for which he was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1860 . When the Civil War broke out , he joined the US Army as a Colonel . At times he was under the command of Ulysses S. Grant . He quickly made a career in the army: by 1864 he made it to major general. He participated in several battles and was wounded several times. In 1864 he asked for his retirement from the army in order to run for governor in Illinois.

politics

Illinois Governor

After the successful election as governor of Illinois, Oglesby began his four-year term on January 16, 1865. During this time the civil war ended. This meant that production in Illinois had to be converted back to civilian needs. The state had lost many soldiers in the war and there were also many wounded and crippled people whose supplies were not guaranteed. At that time the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution were ratified in Illinois. It was about the end of slavery and the right to vote for blacks. A Board of Equalization has been set up in Illinois . A new penal institution was built and an orphanage was built. A major event at that time was the funeral of the assassinated President Abraham Lincoln in Springfield . According to the constitution, Oglesby was not allowed to run again directly after his term of office was up. Therefore, he resigned on January 11, 1869 from his office.

Further political career

In the following four years he worked as a lawyer. In 1872 he ran again for the office of governor and he was also elected on November 5th. His second term lasted only ten days in January 1873 because he had been elected to the US Senate. Between 1873 and 1879 he was now a member of Congress in Washington, DC . In 1878 he waived re-election. Therefore, he resigned from the Senate in March 1879.

Governor of Illinois again

In 1884, Oglesby ran again for the office of governor of Illinois. He managed to win the November 4th elections this year. This made him the first Illinois governor to be elected to this office three times. His third term began on January 30, 1885 and ended on January 14, 1889. During this time, a juvenile detention center was founded and a tax commission was brought into being. The first skyscraper was completed in Chicago . In May 1886, a workers' demonstration in Chicago's Haymarket Square broke out into violent clashes between demonstrators and police, known as the Haymarket Riots . Among the protesters were some anarchists who were responsible for the deaths of seven police officers. In the end, some of the leaders were arrested and some of them were sentenced to death. Three of those arrested at the time were pardoned by Governor John Peter Altgeld in 1893 .

Further life

After the end of his third and final term, Oglesby applied unsuccessfully to return to the US Senate. After that he withdrew from politics and devoted himself to his private affairs. Richard Oglesby died in 1899. He was married twice and had a total of seven children, including their son John (1878-1938), who was twice lieutenant governor of Illinois. The town of Oglesby in LaSalle County was named after him.

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personal data
SURNAME Oglesby, Richard James
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH July 25, 1824
PLACE OF BIRTH Oldham County , Kentucky
DATE OF DEATH April 24, 1899
Place of death Elkhart , Illinois