James Grant (December 12, 1812 – March 14, 1891) was an American lawyer, statesman, and business leader in

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

. James was born on his family's

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

near

Enfield Enfield may refer to: Places Australia * Enfield, New South Wales * Enfield, South Australia ** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb ** Enfield High School (South Australia) ...

Halifax County, North Carolina Halifax County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 48,622. Its county seat is Halifax. Halifax County is part of the Roanoke Rapids, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is al ...

, on December 12, 1812. He attended the ''University at Chapel Hill'' (now known as

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

) and graduated in 1831, before his eighteenth (18) birthday. While at UNC, he was a member of the

Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies The Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies, commonly known as DiPhi or The Societies, are the original collegiate debating societies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and together comprise the oldest student organization at the Uni ...

. He

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

and moved west. Settling first in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, Grant served as a state's attorney for

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

from 1834 to 1837. Then, in 1840, he moved to the

Iowa Territory The Territory of Iowa was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1838, until December 28, 1846, when the southeastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Iowa. The remaind ...

and opened his law practice. A lifelong

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, he served in the Territorial Assembly as a representative for Scott County in 1842 and 1843. As statehood approached and was granted, he attended the Iowa Constitutional Conventions in 1844 and 1846. His legal practice was very successful, and he made a small fortune representing the railroads. After statehood, he served for several years as judge in the Iowa District Court, but resigned when this created a conflict of interest with his representation of railway lines. In 1851, he invested in and became the first president of the

Chicago and Rock Island Railroad (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. The definition and rules for a

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...

differed in the nineteenth century. His role in the rail industry didn't prevent him from running for the State House of Representatives. He served one term there, from 1852 to 1853,Legis.iowa.gov
was elected Speaker of the House, and was able to secure valuable franchises and

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

concessions for the railroad. He also served for a while as mayor of Davenport. Grant left the railroad and returned to his private legal practice for several years. Around 1880 he retired and moved to California for the climate. He died on March 14, 1891, in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. His remains were shipped back to Davenport for his funeral, and he is buried in the Oakdale Cemetery there.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grant, James 1812 births 1891 deaths 19th-century American railroad executives Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Politicians from Davenport, Iowa People from Enfield, North Carolina Iowa state court judges Members of the Iowa Territorial Legislature 19th-century American politicians Speakers of the Iowa House of Representatives Mayors of places in Iowa American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law 19th-century American judges

See also

References