James William Wilson was born in Granville County, North Carolina, on December 17, 1832. Wilson was a civil engineer, Confederate officer, and politician. He served as the assistant engineer on the construction of the Western North Carolina Railroad. Governor Zebulon B. Vance appointed him superintendent of the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1864. Wilson was active in the Democratic Party and was elected to the state house of representatives in 1876. He was elected president of the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1877. Wilson oversaw the use of incarcerated labor to finish building the railroad through the mountains. He became chairman of the North Carolina railroad commission in 1891. He died on July 2, 1910.