James Sproull Cothran

James Sproull Cothran (August 8, 1830 – December 5, 1897) was an American lawyer, jurist, and Democratic politician who represented South Carolina’s 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1887 to 1891. Over the course of two terms in Congress, he participated in the legislative process during a significant period in American history, representing the interests of his constituents as a member of the Democratic Party.

Cothran was born in Abbeville County, South Carolina, on August 8, 1830. He was educated in local country schools before pursuing higher education. He attended the University of Georgia in Athens, from which he graduated in 1852. Following his graduation, he studied law and entered private practice, establishing himself as an attorney. His early professional life reflected the typical trajectory of Southern lawyers of his era, combining legal work with increasing involvement in public affairs.

During the American Civil War, Cothran served with the Confederate Army, aligning with the secessionist states during the conflict that reshaped the nation. After the war, he resumed his legal career in South Carolina and became increasingly prominent in the state’s judicial system during the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction periods. His legal expertise and standing at the bar led to a series of important public legal appointments.

Cothran first held significant public office as solicitor of the eighth judicial circuit of South Carolina, serving in that prosecutorial role in 1876 and again in 1880. His performance in these positions contributed to his reputation as a capable lawyer and public official. Building on this experience, he was appointed judge of the eighth judicial circuit of South Carolina, a position he held from 1881 to 1886. As a circuit judge, he presided over a wide range of civil and criminal matters at a time when the state was undergoing political realignment and social change in the decades following the Civil War.

In 1886, Cothran was elected as a Democrat to the Fiftieth Congress, representing South Carolina’s 3rd congressional district, and he took his seat on March 4, 1887. He was subsequently reelected to the Fifty-first Congress, serving continuously from March 4, 1887, to March 3, 1891. During his two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, he contributed to the legislative work of the period, participating in debates and votes that reflected the interests and concerns of his South Carolina constituents in the late nineteenth century. His service coincided with national discussions over economic policy, veterans’ issues, and the evolving federal role in the post-Reconstruction South.

Cothran chose not to be a candidate for renomination to the Fifty-second Congress in 1890, thereby concluding his congressional career at the end of his second term in March 1891. After leaving Congress, he returned to private life. Although specific details of his post-congressional activities are less fully documented, his long career as an attorney, solicitor, judge, and legislator left him as a well-known figure in South Carolina public life.

James Sproull Cothran died on December 5, 1897, in New York, New York. Following his death, his remains were returned to his native state, and he was interred in Upper Long Cane Cemetery in Abbeville, South Carolina. His life and career spanned the antebellum, Civil War, Reconstruction, and post-Reconstruction eras, and his service in both the judiciary and the Congress placed him among the notable South Carolina public officials of the nineteenth century.