Lucas, Josiah M.

Born: 1812-02-13 Maryland

Died: 1889-07-05 Saint Louis, Missouri

Flourished: Washington, DC

Josiah M. Lucas was a newspaper editor, county government official, federal government official, diplomat, and U.S. Army officer. He emigrated from his native Maryland to Illinois in 1830, settling near Jacksonville, Illinois. A Whig, he took over the Illinois Patriot in 1838 and renamed it the Illinoian. He eventually became editor and remained in that position until 1843, when he won election as county recorder. In February 1839, Lucas married Dalla A. Saunders. He claimed to be a witness to Abraham Lincoln's duel with James Shields. Lucas later moved to Washington, DC to become postmaster of the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1849, he was serving as a clerk in the U.S. General Land Office. In 1850, Lucas was living in Georgetown, District of Columbia, with his wife and working as a clerk. He temporarily lost his position at the General Land Office in 1851, but had returned by 1853, and remained employed at the General Land Office until at least 1857. Lucas later held a position at the U.S. Patent Office. Upon commencement of the Civil War, Lucas volunteered for military duty, entering service in the Commissaries of Subsistence Volunteers with the rank of captain. He remained in the military until the end of the war. In June 1865, the War Department promoted Lucas to the rank of brevet major for efficient and meritorious service. Upon the conclusion of the war, Lucas returned to Washington, DC and worked as an editor. He also served nine years in the consular service, holding the position of consul at Tunstall, England and other places.

Charles M. Eames, comp., Historic Morgan and Classic Jacksonville (Jacksonville, IL: Daily Journal Steam Job Printing, 1885), 89, 97-98; Michael Burlingame, Abraham Lincoln: A Life (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008), 1:298; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Morgan County, 21 February 1839, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Georgetown, Washington County, DC, 229; U.S. Census Office, Ninth Census of the United States (1870), Ward 4, Washington, DC, 427; Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth September, 1853 (Washington, DC: Robert Armstrong, 1853), 134; Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth September, 1855 (Washington, DC: A. O. P. Nicholson, 1855), 78; Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth September, 1857 (Washington, DC: A. O. P. Nicholson, 1857), 79; Francis B. Heitman, Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1903), 1:645; St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), 6 July 1889, 8:6; St. Louis Globe-Democrat (MO), 7 July 1889, 7:1; Gravestone, Diamond Grove Cemetery, Jacksonville, IL.