Chalmers, James Ronald, 1831-1898

James Ronald Chalmers was a Confederate officer and served as a U.S. Representative for Mississippi after Reconstruction.

Born in Halifax County, Virginia, on January 11, 1831, Chalmers moved with his family to Mississippi during his youth, settling in Holly Springs. After graduating from South Carolina College, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in Holly Springs in 1853. Five years later, he was elected district attorney. He was selected as a delegate to Mississippi’s secession convention in 1861, and helped pass the ordinance of secession which declared the state separate from the Union.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Chalmers volunteered for military service. He was first commissioned as a captain the Confederate army and soon received a promotion to colonel of the 9th Mississippi Infantry Regiment. After commanding Confederate troops at Pensacola, Florida, Chalmers was promoted again, to brigadier general. He performed well during the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862 and again during the Battle of Murfreesboro from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863. In 1864, he fought in western Tennessee, including the Battle of Fort Pillow, which involved Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrest murdering several African American Union prisoners. In 1865, he was placed in charge of all Mississippi cavalry in the Mississippi and western Tennessee region. He surrendered to Union forces in Alabama in May 1865.

After the Civil War, Chalmers returned to Mississippi and resumed practicing law. He gained fame among white conservatives through his opposition to Republican Reconstruction, and led an armed group of Democrats to Friar’s Point in 1876 to chase away the sheriff and intimidate African Americans in the area. That same year he won a state senate seat. When Mississippi was readmitted to the Union, Chalmers won a seat to the U.S. House of Representatives, serving from 1877 to 1880. Although he again won reelection in 1880, his Republican opponent, John R. Lynch, disputed the election results. A Congressional investigation found in favor for Lynch, but not until 1882 after Chalmers had served most of the term.

Around 1882, Chalmers broke with the traditional Democratic Party in Mississippi. He ran for reelection in 1882, but as an Independent Democrat with support from some Republicans and the Greenback Party (which was a third-party political movement that focused on economic matters). A traditional Democrat candidate, Van H. Manning, won the election, but this time Chalmers contested the results. Congress decided in Chalmer’s favor and he reentered Congress in June 1884, but lost reelection later that fall.

Chalmers returned to practicing law after the 1884 election. He moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and died on April 29, 1882. He had been married to Rebecca Arthur; the couple had two children. Chalmers is buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee.

(Wikipedia; National Park Service, Christopher Losson, “James Ronald Chalmers,” Mississippi Encyclopedia; FindaGrave)

James Ronald Chalmers belonged to the following social groups: