James Houston Thomas (September 22, 1808 – August 4, 1876) was an American politician and a member of 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

for

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

's 6th congressional district.

Biography

Thomas was born in

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 Ro ...

on September 22, 1808. He attended the rural

schools A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...

and graduated from

Jackson College Jackson College is a public college in Jackson County, Michigan. Originally established as Jackson Junior College in 1928, Jackson County electors voted to reincorporate the institution as a community college district under the "Public Act 188 ...

Columbia, Tennessee Columbia is a city in and the county seat of Maury County, Tennessee. The population was 41,690 as of the 2020 United States census. Columbia is included in the Nashville metropolitan area. The self-proclaimed "mule capital of the world," Colum ...

in 1830. He studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1831, and commenced practice in Columbia, Tennessee. He owned slaves. He married Margaret Meeds Stevens.

Career

From 1836 to 1842, Thomas served as

Attorney General of Tennessee The Tennessee Attorney General (officially, Attorney General and Reporter) is a position within the Tennessee state government. The Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer and lawyer for Tennessee. The current office holder is Jona ...

. Thomas 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 Thirtieth and Thirty-first Congresses. Though he was not a successful candidate for re-election in 1850 to the

Thirty-second Congress The 32nd 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, 1851, ...

, he was later elected 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, ...

. He served from March 4, 1847 to March 3, 1851 and from March 4, 1859 to March 3, 1861. He resumed the practice of law in Columbia, Tennessee. He was a Delegate from Tennessee to the Confederate Provisional Congress from 1861 to 1862.

Death

Thomas died in

Fayetteville, Tennessee Fayetteville is a city and the county seat of Lincoln County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,994 at the 2000 census, and 6,827 at the 2010 census. A census estimate from 2018 showed 7,017. History Fayetteville is the largest cit ...

in Lincoln County on August 4, 1876 (age 67 years, 317 days). He is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at St. John's Cemetery in Ashwood in

Maury County, Tennessee Maury County ( ) is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee, in the Middle Tennessee region. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 100,974. Its county seat is Columbia, Tennessee, C ...

References

External links

*
1808 births 1876 deaths People from Iredell County, North Carolina American people of Welsh descent Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee Deputies and delegates to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States Tennessee Attorneys General American slave owners People from Columbia, Tennessee 19th-century American politicians People of Tennessee in the American Civil War {{Tennessee-politician-stub