James Austin Connolly was a U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

.

Born in Newark, New Jersey

Newark, New Jersey

Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...

, Connolly moved to Chesterville, Ohio

Chesterville, Ohio

Chesterville is a village in Morrow County, Ohio, United States, along the Kokosing River. The population was 193 at the 2000 census. Chesterville is southeast of Mount Gilead, the county seat.-Geography:Chesterville is located at...

, with his parents in 1850.
He attended the common schools and Selby Academy, Chesterville, Ohio

Chesterville, Ohio

Chesterville is a village in Morrow County, Ohio, United States, along the Kokosing River. The population was 193 at the 2000 census. Chesterville is southeast of Mount Gilead, the county seat.-Geography:Chesterville is located at...

.
He served as assistant clerk of the State senate in 1858 and 1859.
He studied law.
He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1859 and practiced in Mount Gilead, Ohio

Mount Gilead, Ohio

Mount Gilead is a village in Morrow County, Ohio, United States.Mount Gilead's population was 3,290 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Morrow County and the center of population of Ohio. The village was established in 1832, eight years after white settlers arrived in the region...

.
He moved to Charleston, Illinois

Charleston, Illinois

Charleston is a city in and the county seat of Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 21,838 as of the 2010 census. The city is home to Eastern Illinois University and has close ties with its neighbor Mattoon, Illinois...

, in 1861.
Enlisted in the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 as a private in the One Hundred and Twenty-third Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in 1862 and was afterwards captain, major, and brevet lieutenant colonel.
He served as member of the State house of representatives 1872-1876.
United States attorney for the southern district of Illinois from 1876 to 1885 and again from 1889 to 1893.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1886 to the Fiftieth

50th United States Congress

The Fiftieth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1887 to March 4, 1889, during the third and fourth...

 Congress.
Again nominated in 1888 but declined to run.

Connolly was elected as a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 to the Fifty-fourth

54th United States Congress

- House of Representatives :-Leadership:- Senate :* President: Adlai E. Stevenson * President pro tempore: William P. Frye - Majority leadership :* Republican Conference Chairman: John Sherman- Minority leadership :...

 and Fifty-fifth

55th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:* Republican: 206 * Democratic: 124* Populist: 22* Silver Republican: 3* Silver: 1* Independent Republican: 1TOTAL members: 357-Leadership:-Senate:* President: Garret Hobart * President pro tempore: William P...

 Congresses (March 4, 1895-March 3, 1899).
He was not a candidate for renomination in 1898.
He resumed the practice of law in Springfield, Illinois

Springfield, Illinois

Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...

, where he died December 15, 1914.
He was interred in Oak Ridge Cemetery

Oak Ridge Cemetery

Oak Ridge Cemetery is a cemetery located in Springfield, Illinois in the United States.Lincoln's Tomb, which serves as the final resting place of Abraham Lincoln, his wife and all but one of his children, is located at Oak Ridge...

.