James W. Robison (March 19, 1831 – July 2, 1909), born James W. Robertson, was a Scottish American farmer, horticulturist, politician, and horse breeder. After his family immigrated to the United States shortly after his birth, Robison attended public school and then studied at

Illinois College Illinois College is a private liberal arts college in Jacksonville, Illinois. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church (USA). It was the second college founded in Illinois but the first to grant a degree (in ...

. He became a wealthy farmer, particularly noted for his large orchards. He served two terms in the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the ...

in the 1870s. In 1879, he visited

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

and established a farm in Butler County. The estate eventually amassed and featured one of the largest

Percheron The Percheron is a horse breed, breed of draft horse that originated in the Huisne river valley in western France, part of the former Perche province, from which the breed takes its name. Usually gray (horse), gray or black (horse), black in col ...

ranches in the nation. Robison was elected to the

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

in 1897.

Biography

James W. Robison was born near

Banff, Scotland Banff () is a town in the Banff and Buchan area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is situated on Banff Bay and faces the town of Macduff, Aberdeenshire, Macduff across the estuary of the River Deveron. It is a former royal burgh, and is the county ...

, on March 19, 1831, shortly before his family immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. He was the son of railroad contractor James Robertson, who worked on the Pontiac and Detroit Railway in

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

and other lines in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. In payment for his Illinois services, James Robertson was given a large plot of land in Tazewell County in 1835. He moved the family there to establish a farm. A clerical error gave these lands to "James Robison", so the family adopted the new spelling of the name. James W. attended public school in

Tremont, Illinois Tremont is a village in Tazewell County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,277 at the 2020 census. Tremont is located 14 miles southeast of Peoria. History James Chapman settled in the Tremont area in 1820, followed by William Sterli ...

, then matriculated at

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

. For the next thirty years, Robison managed a farm. He fruit orchards were so successful that he was nicknamed "Apple Robison". In 1874, he was elected to the

as a Republican and served two two-year terms. Robison visited

in 1879 and purchased a tract of land in Butler County along the Whitewater River. He moved his family to Eldorado, Kansas, in 1884. He established his farm, Whitewater Falls, four miles north of Towanda. Robison was the first to grow

alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial plant, perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, ...

in the state and farmed large amounts of wheat. With no more orchards, locals aware of his previous nickname decided to instead call him "Wheat Robison". With his sons, he purchased an additional for his estate. He began to breed horses in 1884, focusing on

s. By 1911, the Whitewater Falls Stock Farm was the largest Percheron farm in the United States. Robison moved to Eldorado in 1888. In 1897, he was elected to the

. James W. Robison married Sarah A. Woodrow on March 27, 1860. They had nine children: Leslie W., James C., Frank L., Fred G., Elmer C., Edgar D., and three boys that died in infancy. Robison was a charter member of the Illinois State Horticultural Society, serving on its board of executives with one term as president. In 1901 he was elected to the Kansas railway commission, serving two years as its chairman of the board. He was a member of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture, served two terms as its president, and was its director at the time of his death. He co-founded the Kansas State Cattle Shippers' Association and served as its president. Robison was a co-founder of the Eldorado State Bank and served on the board of the Farmers' National Bank of

Pekin, Illinois Pekin ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tazewell County in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located on the Illinois River, Pekin is the largest city of Tazewell County and the second most populous municipality of the Peoria metropolitan area ...

. Robison died from

apoplexy Apoplexy () refers to the rupture of an internal organ and the associated symptoms. Informally or metaphorically, the term ''apoplexy'' is associated with being furious, especially as "apoplectic". Historically, it described what is now known as a ...

in Eldorado on July 2, 1909, and was buried in Belle Vista Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robison, James W. 1831 births 1909 deaths People from Banff, Aberdeenshire British emigrants to the United States Republican Party Illinois state senators Republican Party Kansas state senators American racehorse owners and breeders Businesspeople in agriculture People from El Dorado, Kansas Illinois College alumni People from Tazewell County, Illinois 19th-century members of the Kansas Legislature 19th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly