Biographical Details
Date of Birth: July 19, 1829
Birth Location: Accomack County, VA, USA
Graduation Year(s): 1850
Degree(s) Earned: Bachelors
Date of Death: April 22, 1921
Death Location: San Francisco, CA, USA
John Henry Wise
Life Experience
John Henry Wise was a direct descendant of Captain Edmond Scarborough, who brought his family to America on the “Mayflower” in 1620. Wise was the second of seven boys. Wise’s father died three days after his fifteenth birthday, while his mother was pregnant. Four months later, his youngest brother, Lewis, was born. In 1844, his uncle Henry, a congressman, who supported annexation of Texas to the U.S., became U.S. Minister to Brazil. Wise graduated from IU in 1850. He was in the same graduating class as his younger brother, George, and his cousins, John James Wise and Obadiah Jennings Wise. Wise moved to California, working for the Coast Survey from 1853 to 1861. In 1856, his uncle, Henry, became governor of Virginia. As governor, Henry took responsibility for making the controversial decision to execute John Brown in 1859.
Wise’s four youngest brothers and numerous cousins served in the Civil War; they resided in the slave state of Virginia. As he was in the free state of California, Wise was able to stay out of the war and did not have to risk firing at his own family. His brother, Lewis, was wounded in 1864 at the Battle of the Crater; the following year, he was captured and held prisoner at Point Lookout Prison. Remaining in civilian duty, Wise served as inspector and collector in the San Francisco Customs House. After the war, he made his living as a wool merchant. He also became director of the Free Library of San Francisco and was elected to San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors.
Marriage and Family
Wise’s mother died in 1866, elder brother Tully Jr. in 1884, brother James in 1889, brother Peyton in 1897, brother Franklin in 1901, brother George in 1906, and youngest brother Lewis in 1917, all in Richmond. Wise died in 1921 in San Francisco. He was the brother of George Douglas Wise, first cousin of John James Wise, and first cousin of Obadiah Jennings Wise.
Interesting Anecdote
In 1856, Wise County, Texas, and Wise County, Virginia, were both named for Wise’s uncle, Henry, who was governor of Virginia at the time. Both counties exist today and are named as such.
References
- Wylie
- Findagrave.com
- Wikipedia
- Harding (1904)