James Harrison Cravens was a U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

, second cousin of James Addison Cravens.

Biography

Born in Harrisonburg, Virginia

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Harrisonburg is an independent city in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia in the United States. Its population as of 2010 is 48,914, and at the 2000 census, 40,468. Harrisonburg is the county seat of Rockingham County and the core city of the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical...

, Cravens studied law.
He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1823 and commenced practice in Harrisonburg, Virginia

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Harrisonburg is an independent city in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia in the United States. Its population as of 2010 is 48,914, and at the 2000 census, 40,468. Harrisonburg is the county seat of Rockingham County and the core city of the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical...

.
He moved to Franklin, Pennsylvania, in 1823 and resumed the practice of law.
He moved to Madison, Indiana

Madison, Indiana

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,004 people, 5,092 households, and 3,085 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,402.9 people per square mile . There were 5,597 housing units at an average density of 654.1 per square mile...

, in 1829 and engaged in agricultural pursuits.
He served as member of the State house of representatives in 1831 and 1832.
He moved to Ripley County, Indiana

Ripley County, Indiana

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,523 people, 9,842 households, and 7,273 families residing in the county. The population density was 59 people per square mile . There were 10,482 housing units at an average density of 24 per square mile...

, in 1833, where he practiced law and managed a farm.
He served as member of the State senate in 1839.

Cravens was elected as a Whig

Whig Party (United States)

The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...

 to the Twenty-seventh

27th United States Congress

The Twenty-seventh United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1841 to March 3, 1843, during the one-month...

 Congress (March 4, 1841 – March 3, 1843).
He was an unsuccessful candidate of the Free-Soil Party

Free Soil Party

The Free Soil Party was a short-lived political party in the United States active in the 1848 and 1852 presidential elections, and in some state elections. It was a third party and a single-issue party that largely appealed to and drew its greatest strength from New York State. The party leadership...

 for Governor of Indiana in 1852, member of the State house of representatives in 1856.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the attorney generalship of the State in 1856.
He served as lieutenant colonel of the Eighty-third Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

.
During Morgan's raid in Indiana he and his soldiers were taken captive.
He died in Osgood, Indiana

Osgood, Indiana

Osgood is a town in Center Township, Ripley County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,624 at the 2010 census. In 1999, the community received a $23 million bequest from the Gilmore and Golda Reynolds Foundation, which was established by two lifelong Osgood residents to assist the town...

, December 4, 1876 and was interred in Versailles Cemetery, Versailles, Indiana

Versailles, Indiana

Versailles is a town in Johnson Township, Ripley County, Indiana, United States. The population was 2,113 at the 2010 census. The town is the county seat of Ripley County.-Geography:Versailles is located at...

.