# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/jesse-w-fell
# Generated: 2026-08-13T19:51:09.100Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/jesse-w-fell"
name: "Jesse W. Fell"
slug: "jesse-w-fell"
description: "Jesse W. Fell was an American businessman and landowner. He was instrumental in the founding of Illinois State University as well as Normal, Pontiac, Clinton, Towanda, Dwight, DeWitt County and Livingston County in Central Illinois. He was also the founder of the newspaper The Pantagraph. As a close friend of Abraham Lincoln, it was Fell who urged him to challenge his opponent, Stephen A. Douglas, to their famous series of debates."
tagline: "American businessman and land owner (1808–1887)"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/JesseFell.jpg?width=1200"
gender: "male"
country:
  name: "United States"
  isoCode: "US"
category:
  name: "Business Professionals"
  slug: "business-professionals"
profileType:
  name: "Business Professional"
  slug: "business-professional"
birthDate: "1808-11-10"
deathDate: "1887-02-25"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           38.92
  momentum:             0
  historical:           4.409504
  currentAttention:     0
  sourceConfidence:     30
  profileCompleteness:  70
  trendDirection:       "FALLING"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
sources:
  - url: "https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AC%D9%8A%D8%B3%D9%8A_%D8%AF%D8%A8%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%88._%D9%81%D9%8A%D9%84"
    title: "جيسي دبليو. فيل"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://azb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AC%D8%B3%DB%8C_%D8%AF%D8%A8%D9%84%DB%8C%D9%88._%D9%81%D9%84"
    title: "جسی دبلیو. فل"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_W._Fell"
    title: "Jesse W. Fell"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_W._Fell"
    title: "Jesse W. Fell"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_W._Fell"
    title: "Jesse W. Fell"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6186945"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Imported from discovery source: wikidata-dump