James Gorrall Blair

United States representative lawyer politician

January 1, 1825 (age 79)

He received a limited education before moving to Monticello, Missouri in 1840, where he worked on farms. He continued his education on his own, and was elected clerk of the circuit court which included Lewis County, serving from 1848 to 1854. A Democrat during the American Civil War, Blair supported the Union and opposed secession, but was unable to serve in the military because of poor eyesight and other health issues. After the war he opposed most Reconstruction measures as being overly harsh to former supporters of the Confederacy. Blair had opposed slavery, and supported adoption of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, which ended slavery and guaranteed the right to vote regardless of race. Democrats in Missouri largely opposed these amendments, causing Blair to join the Republican Party. He served as delegate to the Republican state convention in 1870. Later that year he was elected to the United States. House as a supporter of the Liberal Republican Party, and he served in the 42nd Congress, March 4, 1871 to March 3, 1873. Blair was not a candidate for renomination in 1872, and returned to practicing law and operating a farm in Monticello. He died in Monticello on March 1, 1904, and was interred at Forest Grove Cemetery in Canton.

James Gorrall Blair

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United States representative lawyer politician

Education

Blair studied law while serving as court clerk, obtained admission to the bar in 1854, and began a practice in Canton.

Career

He received a limited education before moving to Monticello, Missouri in 1840, where he worked on farms. He continued his education on his own, and was elected clerk of the circuit court which included Lewis County, serving from 1848 to 1854. A Democrat during the American Civil War, Blair supported the Union and opposed secession, but was unable to serve in the military because of poor eyesight and other health issues.

After the war he opposed most Reconstruction measures as being overly harsh to former supporters of the Confederacy.

Blair had opposed slavery, and supported adoption of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, which ended slavery and guaranteed the right to vote regardless of race. Democrats in Missouri largely opposed these amendments, causing Blair to join the Republican Party.

He served as delegate to the Republican state convention in 1870. Later that year he was elected to the United States. House as a supporter of the Liberal Republican Party, and he served in the 42nd Congress, March 4, 1871 to March 3, 1873.

Blair was not a candidate for renomination in 1872, and returned to practicing law and operating a farm in Monticello.

He died in Monticello on March 1, 1904, and was interred at Forest Grove Cemetery in Canton.

Politics

He maintained his interest in politics and returned to the Democratic Party, after Missouri Democrats tacitly accepted the constitutional amendments that the party had previously opposed.

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James Gorrall Blair

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