James Semple
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James Semple (January 5, 1798 – December 20, 1866) was an American attorney and politician. He was Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, Attorney General of Illinois, an associate justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, Chargé d'Affaires to New Granada, and United States Senator from Illinois.
Semple was born in Green County, Kentucky, and was raised and educated in Clinton County. He served in the Kentucky militia during the War of 1812 and then moved to Missouri, where he was active in the militia and owned and operated several businesses. He later studied law in Missouri and Kentucky, attained admission to the bar, and moved to Edwardsville, Illinois, to start a practice. He became active in politics as a Democrat, but was opposed to slavery, and he served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1828 to 1832. He continued his militia service after moving to Illinois, and took part in the Black Hawk War. After service as Illinois Attorney General from 1832 to 1834, Semple returned to the Illinois House, where he served as Speaker from 1834 to 1837.
From 1838 to 1842, Semple served as US Chargé d'Affaires in New Granada. Upon returning to Illinois, he was appointed an associate justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, but he served only a few months because later that year he was selected to fill a vacancy in the US Senate, where he served from 1843 to 1847.
After leaving politics, Semple practiced law, was active in several business ventures, and attempted to market an invention called the prairie car, a forerunner of the modern automobile. He died in Elsah, Illinois, a town he founded, and was buried at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri.
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