James Phelan Jr.
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - James Phelan Jr.
OR:
James Phelan Jr. on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

James Phelan Jr. (December 7, 1856 – January 30, 1891) was a nineteenth-century lawyer and politician from
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
. He served as a
United States Congressman 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 the ...
from Tennessee, representing the tenth district.


Biography

Phelan was born in
Aberdeen, Mississippi Aberdeen is the county seat of Monroe County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,961, down from 5,612 in 2010. Located on the banks of the Tombigbee River, Aberdeen was one of the busiest Mississippi ports ...
to James Phelan Sr., a member of the
Confederate Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly/legislature of the Confederate States of America that existed from February 1861 to April/June 1865, during the American Civil War. Its actions were, ...
, and Eliza J Phelan. He was of Irish descent on his father's side, and Scottish descent on his mother' side. He attended various schools. In 1874 he went abroad, and in 1878 received his Ph.D. from the
University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...
, having written his dissertation on the life and works of
Philip Massinger Philip Massinger (1583 – 17 March 1640) was an English dramatist. His plays, including '' A New Way to Pay Old Debts'', '' The City Madam'', and '' The Roman Actor'', are noted for their satire and realism, and their political and soci ...
. Returning to the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, he married Mary Early of Virginia, with whom he had three children.


Career

In 1881, Phelan became the owner of '' The Avalanche'', a
newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...
in
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. He was admitted to the Tennessee bar that same year, and began the practice of law in Memphis. 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
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, 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 Artic ...
, Phelan served in that body from March 4, 1887, until his death in 1891. During his term in the House, he published his book, ''History of Tennessee, the Making of a State''.


Death

Phelan died in
Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of The Bahamas. It is on the island of New Providence, which had a population of 246,329 in 2010, or just over 70% of the entire population of The Bahamas. As of April 2023, the preliminary results of ...
on January 30, 1891. He is interred at Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee.


See also

*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899) The following is a list of United States United States Senate, senators and United States House of Representatives, representatives who died of natural or accidental causes, or who killed themselves, while serving their terms between 1790 and 18 ...


References


External links

*''Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896.'' Chicago: Quincy Who's Who, 1963. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Phelan, James Jr. 1856 births 1891 deaths 19th-century American newspaper publishers (people) American people of Irish descent Mass media people from Memphis, Tennessee People from Aberdeen, Mississippi Leipzig University alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee 19th-century American journalists Journalists from Tennessee American male journalists 19th-century American male writers 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives