James M. Barnes is a former member of the US House of Representatives from Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. He was born on January 9, 1899 in Jacksonville, Illinois

Jacksonville, Illinois

Jacksonville is a city in Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,940 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Morgan County....

 and attended the public schools. During the First World War, he served overseas as a private in the United States Marine Corps in 1918 and 1919. Barnes graduated from Illinois College at Jacksonville in 1921 and from the law department of Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 in 1924. 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 1924 and commenced the practice of law in Jacksonville, later serving as county judge of Morgan County, Illinois, from 1926 to 1934. He resumed the practice of law 1934 to 1939. Barnes was elected as a Democrat to the Seventy-sixth

76th United States Congress

The Seventy-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1939 to January 3, 1941, during the seventh and...

 and Seventy-seventh

77th United States Congress

-Major events:* December 7, 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor* December 8, 1941: Joint Session of Congress met to hear President Roosevelt deliver his "Day of Infamy" speech...

 Congresses (January 3, 1939-January 3, 1943). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1942 to the Seventy-eighth

78th United States Congress

The Seventy-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1943 to January 3, 1945, during the last two years...

 Congress. Barnes was appointed administrative assistant to President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...

 on March 1, 1943, and served until July 15, 1945. He then resumed the practice of law in Washington, D.C.

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....

, where he died June 8, 1958.

External links

• Biography
• James M. Barnes at Find-A-Grave