James Madison Leach (January 17, 1815 – June 1, 1891) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from

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 So ...

. Leach was born on his family's homestead, "Lansdowne", in

Randolph County, North Carolina Randolph County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 144,171. Its county seat is Asheboro. Randolph County is included in the Greensboro- High Point, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area ...

, January 17, 1815. He attended the common schools and Caldwell Institute in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte and Raleigh, the 69th-most populous city in the Un ...

. He entered the US Military Academy in 1836, but resigned in 1838 and returned to North Carolina to study law. He was admitted to the bar in 1842. Leach began his law practice in

Lexington, North Carolina Lexington is the county seat of Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 18,931. It is located in central North Carolina, south of Winston-Salem. Major highways include I-85, I-85B, U ...

, and served in the State house of commons from 1848 to 1858. Leach served as a presidential elector on the American Party ticket in 1856 and was elected as an

Opposition Party Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

candidate to the

Thirty-sixth Congress The 36th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1859, ...

(March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861). 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 th ...

, Leach served as a captain and lieutenant colonel of the 21st North Carolina Infantry in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

. He saw action in many of the early campaigns of

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, considered one of the best-known Confederate commanders, after Robert E. Lee. He played a prominent role in nearl ...

, including the Valley Campaign. He served in the

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...

during the Peninsula Campaign and other battles, including the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

, where the regiment assaulted

Cemetery Hill Cemetery Hill is a landform on the Gettysburg Battlefield that was the scene of fighting each day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863). The northernmost part of the Army of the Potomac defensive " fish-hook" line, the hill is gently ...

. He served as a member of the

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 ...

in 1864 and 1865. He served as a member of 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 ...

in 1865, 1866, and again in 1879 and was elected as a

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 ...

to the Forty-second and Forty-third Congresses (March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1875). The grand jury of the Federal District Court in session at Raleigh, returned a true bill of indictment against Jas M Leach, member of Congress from North Carolina, James A Leach, and fifteen others, for conspiracy, under the act of Congress of May 31, 1872, commonly known as the Ku Klux law. Leach died in

on June 1, 1891, and is interred in Hopewell Cemetery, near

Trinity, North Carolina Trinity is a city in Randolph County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 7,006 at the 2020 census. Trinity is part of the Greensboro-High Point Metropolitan Statistical Area of the Piedmont Triad metro region. History The communi ...

References

External links

Entry in Congressional Biographical Database
lexandria Gazette 12/19/1871 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68322577/leach/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Leach, James Madison 1815 births 1891 deaths People from Randolph County, North Carolina North Carolina Know Nothings Opposition Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina 1856 United States presidential electors Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from North Carolina Confederate States Army officers United States Military Academy alumni 19th-century American politicians North Carolina Oppositionists