James McLachlan (American politician)

{{Infobox officeholder

| name=James McLachlan

| image name=James McLachlan 1907.png

| state1=California

| constituency1={{ushr|CA|6|6th district}}

| party=Republican

| term_start1=March 4, 1895

| term_end1=March 3, 1897

| preceded1=Marion Cannon

| succeeded1=Charles A. Barlow

| constituency2={{ushr|CA|6|6th district}} (1901–03)
{{ushr|CA|7|7th district}} (1903–11)

| term_start2=March 4, 1901

| term_end2=March 3, 1911

| preceded2=Russell J. Waters

| succeeded2=William Stephens

| birth_date={{birth date|1852|8|1}}

| birth_place=Argyllshire, Scotland

| death_date={{death date and age|1940|11|21|1852|8|1}}

| death_place= Los Angeles, California

| death_cause =

| resting_place = Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Glendale, California

| spouse=

| children=

| religion=

| occupation=

| residence=

| alma_mater=

}}

James McLachlan (August 1, 1852 – November 21, 1940) was an American educator, lawyer and politician who served six terms as a U.S. Representative from California.

Early life

McLachlan was born in Argyllshire, Scotland, on August 1, 1852.{{cite web |url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/candidate/6618 |title=James McLachlan (Republican) |publisher=joincalifornia.com |access-date=June 16, 2019}} He immigrated to the United States in 1855 with his parents, who settled in Tompkins County, New York. He was reared on a farm there.

Education

He attended the public schools in Tompkins County. Eventually, he attended Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, graduating in 1878.

Career

Even before McLachlan went to college, he was a teacher in the public schools he had attended. He was elected school commissioner of Tompkins County in 1877, while still earning his degree.

After his college graduation, McLachlan studied law. He was admitted to practice in New York State in 1880, and practiced law in Ithaca, New York from 1881 to 1888, when he moved to Pasadena, California

McLachlan continued his law practice in Pasadena. From 1890 to 1892, he served as Los Angeles County District Attorney.

= Congress =

On November 6, 1894, McLachlan was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1897),{{cite web |url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1894-11-06 |title=November 6, 1894 General Election |publisher=joincalifornia.com |date=November 6, 1894 |access-date=June 16, 2019}} defeating Democrat George S. Patton (whose son, George S. Patton, Jr., was the famous World War II general).

In 1896, McLachlan was unsuccessful for re-election to Congress, losing to Charles A. Barlow, who had both the Populist and Democratic nominations.

McLachlan was elected to the Fifty-seventh through the Sixty-first Congresses (March 4, 1901 – March 3, 1911).{{cite web |title=S. Doc. 58-1 - Fifty-eighth Congress. (Extraordinary session -- beginning November 9, 1903.) Official Congressional Directory for the use of the United States Congress. Compiled under the direction of the Joint Committee on Printing by A.J. Halford. Special edition. Corrections made to November 5, 1903 |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/SERIALSET-04562_00_00-001-0001-0000 |website=GovInfo.gov |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |access-date=2 July 2023 |page=8 |date=9 November 1903}} He was defeated for renomination to Congress in 1910 by future governor William Stephens.

= Later life and death =

McLachlan resumed the practice of law in Los Angeles and served as a member of the National Monetary Commission in 1911-1912. He died in Los Angeles on November 21, 1940 at the age of 88, and was interred at Forest Lawn Memorial-Park in Glendale, California.