John Ellis Rodley (February 2, 1852 – December 2, 1919) was the fourteenth President of the Chico Board of Trustees, the

governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...

Chico, California Chico ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "little") is the most populous city in Butte County, California, United States. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 101,475 in the 2020 United Sta ...

from 1897 to 1899. He was born February 2, 1852, in

Galashiels Galashiels (; , ) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile in ...

Selkirkshire Selkirkshire or the County of Selkirk is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county of Scotland. It borders Peeblesshire to the west, Midlothian to the north, Roxburghshire to the east, and Dumfriesshire to the south. It de ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, the son of Edward Rodley and Sarah Ellis. His father Edward was a manufacturer of wool. His mother Sarah died in Scotland. The family emigrated to the United States in about 1868, and settled in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. Although, he was still very young at the time, John began his study of

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

under Dr.

Hugh Falconer Hugh Falconer MD FRS (29 February 1808 – 31 January 1865) was a Scottish geologist, botanist, palaeontologist, and paleoanthropologist. He studied the flora, fauna, and geology of India, Assam, Burma, and most of the Mediterranean island ...

in Scotland. He continued his studies in America at Missouri Medical College (also called McDowell Medical College) in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

from where he was graduated in 1881. He began to practice medicine in Lebanon, where he resided until 1884. He moved to St. Louis, where he continued his practice for four more years, where he was on the Missouri Pacific Hospital, the railroad hospital. He also served as surgeon for the

Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad o ...

. In 1888, Dr. Rodley left Missouri for

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and located in Chico. In Chico, he practiced medicine, and served on the Chico Board of Trustees, and as its President. He owed four farms, where he raised grains, fruits and nuts. In 1899, Rodley was sentenced to 12 years in prison after being found guilty of

perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...

in the witnessing of a forged will offered for probate. He was granted parole in 1906.Journal of the Senate and Assembly
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodley, John Ellis 1852 births 1919 deaths American orchardists American people convicted of perjury Physicians from Missouri California city council members California Republicans Mayors of Chico, California People from Galashiels Scottish emigrants to the United States California politicians convicted of crimes 19th-century California politicians 19th-century American Episcopalians Prisoners and detainees of California Washington University School of Medicine alumni