James Wilson (journalist)
Irish-born American journalist and politician; grandfather of Woodrow Wilson (1787-1850)
James Wilson (February 20, 1787 – October 17, 1850) was an Irish-American journalist and politician. Wilson, who began his career working for the Philadelphia Aurora, later purchased the Western Herald and founded the Pennsylvania Advocate. Between 1816 and 1822, he served three one-year terms representing Jefferson County in the Ohio House of Representatives. Wilson was the paternal grandfather of President Woodrow Wilson.
Life and career
Born in Dergalt, County Tyrone, Kingdom of Ireland (in modern Northern Ireland) in 1787, Wilson emigrated in his youth to the United States. He settled in Philadelphia, where he found work as a printer in the office of the Aurora, a Jeffersonian newspaper edited by William Duane. He rose to the position of foreman, publisher, and then editor. Continuing his journalistic career in Steubenville, Ohio, he purchased the Western Herald, which name he changed to Western Herald & Steubenville Gazette. He became involved in state politics, representing Jefferson County in the Ohio House of Representatives in 1816–1817, 1820–1821 and 1821–1822. In 1832, he founded the Pennsylvania Advocate, a newspaper serving Pittsburgh; he owned and edited it for a year before turning it over to his oldest son William Duane Wilson.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “James Wilson (journalist)” as irish-born American journalist and politician; grandfather of Woodrow Wilson (1787-1850). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the people & ideas register because the source frames it as irish-born American journalist and politician; grandfather of Woodrow Wilson (1787-1850). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q20719880. VIAF identifies the subject as 17097190. The Library of Congress control number is nr93027686. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1787, 1850, 1816 and 1822.
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This entry incorporates text from “James Wilson (journalist)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.