b. April 27, 1794, in Loudoun County, Virginia; d. April 29, 1857, in Carmi, Illinois. While studying law, Wilson briefly served in the military during the War of 1812. In 1817, Wilson received his license to practice law in Virginia, and later that year, he moved to the Illinois Territory, where he settled in White County. In 1819, the Illinois General Assembly elected Wilson to fill a vacancy on the Illinois Supreme Court. In 1820, Wilson married Mary S. Davidson, and together they had ten children. In 1824, the general assembly selected Wilson as the chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, a position he held until his retirement in 1848. In 1841, when the Illinois General Assembly increased the number of Illinois Supreme Court justices to nine and gave them circuit court responsibilities, Wilson presided over the Fourth Judicial Circuit, in east central and southeastern Illinois. Wilson presided over at least sixteen circuit court cases in which Lincoln was an attorney. Wilson also served as a justice in 107 cases in which Lincoln represented clients before the Illinois Supreme Court. Wilson was a Whig but rarely participated in politics. After retiring from the bench, he lived on a large farm near Carmi, Illinois, one of three farms he owned in White County.