Background
Wilson was born in Steubenville, Ohio, the son of Mary Anne (Adams) and James Wilson, who were Protestant immigrants from Strabane, County Tyrone, Ireland.
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Wilson was born in Steubenville, Ohio, the son of Mary Anne (Adams) and James Wilson, who were Protestant immigrants from Strabane, County Tyrone, Ireland.
He graduated from Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania (now Washington & Jefferson College) in 1844.
He taught belles-lettres at Washington & Jefferson. When the American Civil War began in 1861, Wilson became a chaplain in the Confederate Army for a short time. After resigning, Wilson cared for wounded Confederate soldiers in battle by transforming his church into a hospital.
During his time in Wilmington, North Carolina, he presided over many events, including the payment of all owed debt, the abolition of pew rents, and the inauguration of subscription and weekly contributions.
He died in 1903.