James Rush Lofland was an American lawyer and politician from Milford, in Kent County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party, who served as U. S. Representative from Delaware.

Early life and family

Born in Milford, Delaware, he received a classical education and was graduated from Delaware College

University of Delaware

The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...

 at Newark, Delaware in 1845. He studied law, and was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1848, commencing his practice in Milford.

Professional and political career

In 1849 he was secretary of the Delaware Senate

Delaware Senate

The Delaware Senate is the upper house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Delaware. It is composed of 21 Senators, each of whom is elected to a four-year term, except when reapportionment occurs, at which time Senators may be elected to a two-year term....

 and was a member of the State constitutional convention in 1853. He was Secretary of State of Delaware

Secretary of State of Delaware

The Secretary of State of Delaware is the head of the Department of State of the U.S. state of Delaware. The Department is in charge of a wide variety of public and governmental services, and is divided into the following divisions:* * * * *...

 from 1855 to 1859, and a paymaster in the United States Army from 1863 to 1867. During the 1872 presidential election he was a delegate to the Republican National Convention

Republican National Convention

The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...

.

Lofland was elected as a Republican to the 43rd Congress, serving from March 4, 1873 to March 4, 1875. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1874 to the 44th Congress, and resumed the practice of law.

Almanac

Elections are held the first Tuesday after November 1. U.S. Representatives took office March 4 and have a two year term.

Public Offices
Office	Type	Location	Began office	Ended office	notes
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...	Legislature Legislature A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...	Washington Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....	March 4, 1873	March 3, 1875

United States Congressional service
Dates	Congress	Chamber	Majority	President	Committees	Class/District
1873–1875	43rd 43rd United States Congress The Forty-third 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, 1873 to March 4, 1875, during the fifth and sixth...	U.S. House 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...	Republican Republican Party (United States) The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...	Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...		at-large Delaware's At-large congressional district Delaware's At-large congressional district is a congressional district that includes the entire U.S. state of Delaware.It is currently represented by Democrat John C. Carney, Jr., the former Lieutenant Governor of Delaware.-Voting:-History:...

Election results
Year	Office		Subject	Party	votes	%		Opponent	Party	votes	%
1872	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...		James R. Lofland	Republican Republican Party (United States) The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...	11,378	51%		Eustis Wright	Democratic Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...	11,023	49%
1874	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...		James R. Lofland	Republican Republican Party (United States) The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...	11,024	47%		James Williams James Williams (Delaware representative) James Williams was an American farmer and politician from Smyrna, in Kent County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served in the Delaware General Assembly and as U. S. Representative from Delaware....	Democratic Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...	12,602	53%

External links

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Delaware’s Members of Congress
• Find a Grave
• The Political Graveyard

Places with more information

• Delaware Historical Society
  Delaware Historical Society
  The Delaware Historical Society began in 1864 as an effort to preserve documents from the Civil War. Since then, it has expanded into a state-wide historical institution with several venues and a major museum in Wilmington and the historic Read House & Gardens in New Castle.The society...
  
  ; website; 505 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801; (302) 655-7161
• University of Delaware
  University of Delaware
  The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...
  
  ; Library website; 181 South College Avenue, Newark, Delaware 19717; (302) 831-2965
• Newark Free Library; 750 Library Ave., Newark, Delaware; (302) 731-7550