James Graham Ramsay (March 1, 1823 – January 10, 1903) was a

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

physician and politician who served in the

North Carolina Senate The North Carolina Senate is the upper chamber of the North Carolina General Assembly, which along with the North Carolina House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the state legislature of North Carolina. The term of office for e ...

and

Confederate States Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly of the Confederate States of America that existed from 1861 to 1865. Its actions were for the most part concerned with measures to establish a new nat ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

Biography

Ramsay was born on his parents' (David Ramsay and Margaret Foster (Graham) Ramsay) plantation in the Coddle Creek area of

Iredell County, North Carolina Iredell County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 186,693. Its county seat is Statesville, and its largest town is Mooresville. The county was formed in 1788, subtracted from R ...

. He received an education from local schools and then attended Davidson College, where he graduated in 1841. After teaching for a year and studying privately for medical school, he attended

Thomas Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its ...

in Philadelphia where he graduated with a medical degree in 1848. He opened a medical practice on his estate, Palermo, near the town of Cleveland, North Carolina, where he practiced for 51 years. In 1849, he was elected the first president of the Rowan County medical society, which he helped form. He owned a small farm and had slaves before the U.S. Civil War. He lived in Scotch Irish Township until 1900 when he was living with his son, James Hill Ramsay, in Salisbury, North Carolina. He died in Salisbury. He is buried in the Third Creek Presbyterian Church cemetery near Cleveland, North Carolina. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1983. He married Sarah Jane Foster on September 23, 1846 in Mocksville, Davie County, North Carolina. James and Sarah had eight children: Margaret Foster (Ramsay) Nelson, Florence May Ramsay, David Allen Ramsay, James Hill Ramsay, Edgar Burton Ramsay, William G. Ramsay, Robert L. Ramsay, and Claudius Clinton.

Political career

He served in the

from 1856 to 1864 and again in 1883. He represented the state in the

Second Confederate Congress The 2nd Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from May 2, 1864, to March 18, 1865, during the last year of Jefferson Davis's presidency, at the Virginia ...

. He was a member of Whig party. He was a member of the Medical Department and Naval Affairs committees in the Confederate Congress of North Carolina. He supported state and individual rights over the needs of the Confederate war efforts while serving in the Senate. He voted in favor of a convention to return North Carolina to the Union by April 1865. After the War, he became a Republican and was a Presidential elector in 1872. He lost two races for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

during

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

—in 1865 (losing to Samuel H. Walkup, who was not seated by the House) and in 1884 (losing to John S. Henderson).

References

* * * * * * ortrait. * Ezra Warner and Buck Yearns, Biographical Register of the Confederate Congress (1975). *

External links

The Political Graveyard

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsay, James 1823 births 1903 deaths North Carolina state senators Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from North Carolina 19th-century American politicians People from Iredell County, North Carolina People from Rowan County, North Carolina