James Herrington (June 6, 1824 – July 7, 1890) was an American politician from

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 ...

. Coming with his family to

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 ...

at a young age, he joined a

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

printing house to support his family. He apprenticed under

Long John Wentworth John Wentworth (March 5, 1815 – October 16, 1888), was the editor of the '' Chicago Democrat,'' publisher of an extensive Wentworth family genealogy, a two-term mayor of Chicago, and a six-term member of the United States House of Representat ...

and became a prominent

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upon his return to

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. He served seven consecutive terms in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

and was once a candidate for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

. When the office was created in 1887, Herrington became the first Mayor of Geneva.

Biography

James Herrington was born in

Mercer County, Pennsylvania Mercer County is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 110,652. Its county seat is Mercer, Pennsylvania, Mercer, and ...

on June 6, 1824. His father would become one of the founders of

Kane County, Illinois Kane County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it has a population of 516,522, making it the fifth-most populous county in Illinois. Its county seat is Gen ...

. Herrington moved with his family to

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

in 1833. The next year, his father sold the property and purchased a claim west in what is now

Geneva, Illinois Geneva is a city in and the county seat of Kane County, Illinois, United States. It is located in the far western side of the Chicago suburbs. Per the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 21,393. Geneva is part of a Tri-Ci ...

. In 1839, his father died, so Herrington moved back to Chicago to apprentice in the printer's trade. He worked in the ''

Chicago Democrat The ''Chicago Democrat'' was the first newspaper in Chicago, Illinois. It was published from 1833 to 1861. In 2017 Atom, LLC restarteChicago Democratand has built a website aimed at statewide coverage of news, sports, weather and information in Il ...

'' offices for seven years under future

Mayor of Chicago The mayor of Chicago is the Chief executive officer, chief executive of city Government of Chicago, government in Chicago, Illinois, the List of United States cities by population, third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsib ...

and

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

, who became a mentor. Herrington returned to Geneva in 1849, where he was elected Kane County Clerk. He served in this position for eight years, dealing in real estate and publishing on the side. He bought a farm in Blackberry Township in 1863. Herrington was elected to the

in 1872 as a

. His views on

corporate personhood Corporate personhood or juridical personality is the legal notion that a juridical person such as a corporation, separately from its associated human beings (like owners, managers, or employees), has at least some of the legal rights and respon ...

proved popular with his district. He for twelve years in the lower house, finally defeated by Thomas O'Donnell in 1884. Herrington then returned to Geneva. He supported Carter Harrison, Sr.'s campaign for the Democratic nomination for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in 1885; the nomination instead went to

William Ralls Morrison William Ralls Morrison (September 14, 1824 – September 29, 1909) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Illinois. Early life and career Born on a farm at Prairie du Long, near the present town of Waterloo, Ill ...

. Herrington served one last term in the Illinois House from 1886 to 1888. Herrington was elected the first Mayor of Geneva in 1887, shortly after the town authorized the position. However, he resigned a few months later due to a conflict with the city council over saloon licenses. In 1888, the Democratic Party nominated Herrington to run for the U.S. House of Representatives, but he was defeated in his strongly Republican district. Herrington married Mary A. Blodgett on January 14, 1850. They had ten children, nine surviving to adulthood. Herrington died on July 7, 1890. He had been suffering from paralysis for the last year, which worsened a few weeks before his death. His death was front-page news on the ''

Chicago Inter Ocean The ''Chicago Inter Ocean'', also known as the ''Chicago Inter-Ocean'', is the name used for most of its history by a newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, from 1865 until 1914. Its editors included Charles A. Dana and Byron Andrews. Histo ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herrington, James 1824 births 1890 deaths Mayors of places in Illinois Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives Politicians from Chicago People from Geneva, Illinois Politicians from Mercer County, Pennsylvania 19th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly