James Albert Norton 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 Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

.

Biography

Norton was born in Bettsville, Ohio

Bettsville, Ohio

Bettsville is a village in Seneca County, Ohio, United States. The population was 784 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bettsville is located at ....

 and attended the district schools where he graduated from Tiffin High School.

During 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...

 he enlisted in the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 in August 1862. He was a sergeant in Company K, One Hundred and First Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry

101st Ohio Infantry

The 101st Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 101st Ohio Infantry was organized at Monroeville, Ohio and mustered in for three years service on August 30, 1862 under the command of Colonel Leander Stem.The regiment was...

. He was later promoted to first lieutenant and adjutant of the One Hundred and Twenty-third Regiment, United States Colored Infantry

123rd Ohio Infantry

The 123rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 123rd Ohio Infantry was organized at Camp Monroeville in Huron County, Ohio and mustered in for three years service on September 24, 1862 under the command of Colonel William T...

, in 1864.

He mustered out of the service in 1865.

Postbellum

After the war Norton studied medicine and commenced practice in Iowa

Iowa

Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

 in 1867 and continued in that profession until 1879.

He studied law and 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 1874.

He served as member of the State house of representatives 1873-1879, as speaker in 1877 and 1878 and as chairman of the State Democratic committee 1887-1892.

From 1885-1892 he served as County auditor and as commissioner of railroads and telegraphs from 1889 to 1895, when he resigned to accept a position in the legal department of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co..

Norton was elected as a Democrat

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...

 to the Fifty-fifth

55th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:* Republican: 206 * Democratic: 124* Populist: 22* Silver Republican: 3* Silver: 1* Independent Republican: 1TOTAL members: 357-Leadership:-Senate:* President: Garret Hobart * President pro tempore: William P...

, Fifty-sixth

56th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:- Leadership :- Senate :* President: Garret Hobart , until November 21, 1899 , vacant thereafter.* President pro tempore: William P. Frye * Democratic Caucus Chairman: James K. Jones...

, and Fifty-seventh

57th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:*Democratic: 151*Republican: 200 *Populist: 5*Silver : 1TOTAL members: 357-Leadership:-Senate:* President: Theodore Roosevelt , until September 14, 1901, vacant thereafter....

 Congresses (March 4, 1897 - March 3, 1903).

He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1902 to the Fifty-eighth

58th United States Congress

- House of Representatives :* Republican : 209 * Democratic : 176* Silver Republican : 1TOTAL members: 386-Senate:* President: Vacant* President pro tempore: William P. Frye -Members:...

 Congress and resumed legal service with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.

He died July 24, 1912 in Tiffin, Ohio

Tiffin, Ohio

Tiffin is a city in and the county seat of Seneca County, Ohio, United States. The population was 18,135 at the 2000 census. The National Arbor Day Foundation has designated Tiffin as a Tree City USA....

and was interred in a mausoleum in Green Lawn Cemetery.