John Wilson Farrelly (son of
Patrick Farrelly) was born in
Meadville, Pennsylvania. He received a limited schooling and graduated from
Allegheny College at Meadville in 1826. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1828 and commenced practice in Meadville. He served as a member of the
Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1837. He served as a member of the
Pennsylvania State Senate for the
21st district from 1841 to 1842 and for the
26th district from 1843 to 1844. Farrelly was elected as a Whig to the
Thirtieth Congress. He served as chairman of the
United States House Committee on Patents during the Thirtieth Congress. He was not a candidate for renomination in
1848. He was appointed Sixth Auditor of the Treasury by President
Zachary Taylor and served from November 5, 1849, until April 9, 1853, when he resigned. He engaged in the practice of law in Meadville until his death in 1860. ==Footnotes==