b. Peru, New York, 1793
d. Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, August 1857

James Henry Lockwood was a fur trader, merchant, judge and territorial legislator. He served as a sutler's clerk at army posts during the War of 1812.

Fur Trade

In 1816, he came to Wisconsin and entered the fur trade in Prairie du Chien. He was licensed as a trader for Jacob Franks in 1817. After living among the Sioux Indians briefly, he settled permanently in Prairie du Chien in 1819 and served one year as a trader for the American Fur Company.

Legal Career

Judge J. D. Doty encouraged Lockwood to study law. Lockwood was admitted to the bar in 1824. The same year, he was appointed prosecuting attorney and postmaster. In 1826, he built the first frame house in Prairie du Chien, a wing of which served as a retail store. Lockwood was appointed associate justice of Crawford County in 1830, and was elected to the territorial legislature in 1836. He was part owner of the Wisconsin Mineral and Transportation Company, which operated a shot tower at Helena. He was also a director of the First State Bank of Prairie du Chien.

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Colls. State Hist. Soc. Wis., 2 (1856), 3 (1857), 10 (1888), 11 (1888), 20 (1911); P. L. Scanlan, Prairie du Chien ([Menasha, Wis.] 1937); J. R. Berryman, ed., Bench and Bar of Wis. (2 vols., Chicago, 1898); WPA MS.