James Henderson "Jim" Duff was an American lawyer and politician.
Background
James Duff was born in Mansfield (now Carnegie), a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The oldest of four children, he was the son of Review Joseph Miller and Margaret (née Morgan) Duff.
His father was a Presbyterian minister for forty years, and his paternal grandfather was the first college-educated doctor in western Pennsylvania.
Education
After graduating at the top of his class at Carnegie High School, Duff attended Princeton University in New Jersey, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1904. He attended the University of Pennsylvania Law School in Philadelphia until 1906, when he transferred to the University of Pittsburgh Law School to be closer to home.
Career
He previously served as the 34th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1947 to 1951. He originally intended to study medicine but, after winning two medals in public speaking at Princeton, decided to study law instead. In 1907, he received his law degree and was admitted to the Barometer
Duff practiced law in Pittsburgh for thirty-six years, establishing the law firm of Duff, Scott and Smith.
He also served as solicitor of Carnegie, and was an elector for Theodore Roosevelt in the 1912 presidential election. In addition to practicing law, Duff was engaged in the oil business for several years.
He began by buying an oil driller"s rig and taking a lease on some property about five miles from his home, where he struck oil. He subsequently engaged in ventures in other parts of western Pennsylvania as well as Mexico.
He also served as president of the Criterion Oil Company and of the Westmoreland Natural Gas Company.
He lost his fortune in the 1929 stock market crash, taking several years to recover financially. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1932, 1936, and 1940. Duff was appointed Attorney General of Pennsylvania by Governor Edward Martin in 1943, serving in that position until 1947.
During his tenure, he worked to strengthen the state"s stream pollution law despite facing strong opposition from the coal industry.
He also fought against the mining industry after promoting legislation to prevent the discharge of mine silt into the Schuylkill River. The Desilting Acting and Clean Streams Acting (also known as the Brunner Acting) were passed in 1945 under Duff"s tenure as Attorney General.
In 1946, John Bell, who had been elected Lieutenant Governor in 1942 and had ascended to the governorship following Martin"s resignation for the United States senate, declined to be a candidate in the upcoming 1946 gubernatorial election. His campaign focused on the issues of conservation, public health, and education.
Duff was elected to the United States Senate from Pennsylvania in 1950.
After losing the 1956 election to Democrat Joe Clark in one of the closest elections in Pennsylvania history, Duff retired from politics, but remained in Washington, District of Columbia He died in Washington, District of Columbia, and was buried in Carnegie, Pennsylvania.
Membership
A member of the Republican Party, he served as United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1951 to 1957. Two of his great-grandfathers were members of the Provincial Council of Pennsylvania between 1683 and 1717.