James P. Mills, father of Anson Mills

James P. Mills was born in 1808 in Pennsylvania. He became an orphan at the age of eight and lived with his aunt. James then became apprentice to a tanner but the apprenticeship was so hard that he ran away. From twenty to twenty-two he served as a journeyman in Geneva, New York, before he and his brother traveled to Indiana. There, James settled in 1830 and married Sarah Kenworthy two years later. They had nine children, the oldest was Anson Mills. Anson Mills, who arrived in El Paso in 1858, was an El Paso pioneer, and created the first map of the city. Image Description: A grainy black and white photograph of James P. Mills is shown. He faces the photographer and wears dark suit with a light-colored shirt underneath and a light-colored ribbon tie at his neck. Mills has dark thick eyebrows and dark short hair curled up just beside his eyes.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: El Paso County Historical Society

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History