Preceded by Martin Welker Preceded by William McKinley Education Oberlin College Succeeded by John Berry Succeeded by William McKinley Party Republican Party | Preceded by William H. Upson Name James Monroe Resigned March 3, 1873 Role Former Ohio State Senator | |
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Died July 7, 1899, Oberlin, Ohio, United States Previous office Ohio State Senator (1860–1864) | ||
Succeeded by Jonathan T. Updegraff | ||
James Monroe (July 18, 1821 – July 6, 1898) was a U.S. Representative from Ohio.
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Early life
Born in Plainfield, Connecticut, Monroe attended the common schools and Plainfield Academy. He was graduated from Oberlin College in 1846. He pursued a postgraduate course in theology and was a professor at Oberlin College from 1849–1862.
Career
He served as a member of the State house of representatives of Ohio in 1856–1859. He served in the State senate from 1860–1862, during which time he was chosen to serve as president pro tempore from 1861 and 1862.
In October 1862, he resigned his seat in the senate to accept the position of United States consul to Rio de Janeiro and served from 1863 to 1869. Following that, he served for several months in 1869 as Charge D'Affaires ad interim to Brazil.
Monroe was elected as a Republican to the Forty-second and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1881). He served as chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor (Forty-third Congress) and was not a candidate for renomination.
Later career
After his terms in the House of Representatives, he returned to Oberlin College as a professor from 1883–1896.
Personal life
He was married twice, first to Elizabeth Maxwell (1825-1862), and later to Julia Finney (1837-1930). He had four children, including:
He died in Oberlin, Ohio, July 6, 1898 and was interred in Westwood Cemetery.
Legacy
The house in which Monroe and his wife Julia lived when they returned to Oberlin from his consul appointment in Rio de Janeiro is currently preserved as part of the Oberlin Heritage Center. The current interior of the house presents decor and information from the 1860s, 1870s, and 1880s, and uses Monroe's commitments to education and the abolition of slavery to highlight important events in the history of the city of Oberlin.