James Butler Bowlin (January 16, 1804 – July 19, 1874) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. Born in

Spotsylvania County, Virginia Spotsylvania County is a county (United States), county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is a suburb approximately 60 miles (90km) south of D.C. It is a part of the Northern Virginia region and the D.C. area. As of 2024, Spotsylvania County ...

near Fredericksburg, Bowlin took an apprenticeship to a trade but abandoned it to teach at a school. He received a classical education and moved to Lewisburg, Virginia in 1825. Bowlin studied law and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1822, commencing his practice in Greenbrier County. He moved to

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

in 1833 and continued the practice of law. Bowlin also established the Farmers and Mechanics' Advocate. He owned slaves. Bowlin served as Chief Clerk of the State House of Representatives in 1836. He served as a member of the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

in 1836 and 1837, was appointed district attorney for St. Louis in 1837, and was an unsuccessful candidate for the State House of Representatives in 1838. Bowlin was elected judge of the criminal court in 1839 and served until his resignation in 1842. Bowlin 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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Twenty-eighth and to the three succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1851). He served as chairman of the Committee on Private Land Claims (Twenty-ninth Congress), Committee on Public Lands (Thirty-first Congress). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1850 to the Thirty-second Congress. Bowlin was appointed

Minister Resident A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of ind ...

New Granada New Granada may refer to various former national denominations for the present-day country of Colombia: *New Kingdom of Granada, from 1538 to 1717 *Viceroyalty of New Granada, from 1717 to 1810, re-established from 1816 to 1822 *United Provinces of ...

by President Pierce December 13, 1854. He was appointed commissioner to

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

by President Buchanan September 9, 1858, and served until February 10, 1859, when the expedition to that country ended. Afterwards, Bowlin resumed the practice of law. He died in St. Louis, July 19, 1874, and was interred in

Bellefontaine Cemetery Bellefontaine Cemetery is a nonprofit, non-denominational cemetery and arboretum in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1849 as a rural cemetery, Bellefontaine has several architecturally significant monuments and mausoleums such as the Louis Su ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowlin, James Butler 1804 births 1874 deaths People from Spotsylvania County, Virginia Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives Ambassadors of the United States to Colombia Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves 19th-century American diplomats 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Missouri General Assembly