Degree Recipient

Life Experience

A direct descendant of Captain Edmond Scarborough, who brought his family to America on the “Mayflower” in 1620, John James Wise was born in Virginia in 1830. His only sibling, George, was born in 1831. Wise’s father, who he was named after, died when he was four years old. 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 first cousins: George Douglas Wise, John Henry Wise, and Obadiah Jennings Wise. Wise became a physician. 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.

During the Civil War, Wise served as a surgeon. His brother, George, was killed in 1864 in the Battle of Petersburg. His mother died in 1885 in Virginia. Jennings Cropper Wise (his first cousin once removed) wrote in 1918, “To this day Dr. Wise is affectionately remembered on the Eastern Shore as one of the most benevolent and popular of Accomack’s sons. He was a most unusual man....Residing on his farm near Drummondtown, he practiced his profession until the day of his death.”

Marriage and Family

Wise never married or had any children.

He was the first cousin of George Douglas Wise, first cousin of John Henry 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

1. Wylie
2. Findagrave.com
3. Wise, Jennings Cropper (1918) Col. John Wise of England and Virginia (1617 – 1695): His Ancestors and Descendants (Richmond, VA: The Bell Book & Stationery Co. Inc.)