James, Darwin R. (Darwin Rush), 1834-1908

Darwin Rush James was born 14 May 1834, in Williamsburg, Massachusetts. At age 14, he and his family moved to Brooklyn, New York, where James finished his education and remained for life. He entered business as an importer of indigo and spices from the East Indies with the firm of Packard and James, located in nearby Manhattan. On 14 January 1858, James married Mary Fairchild, first cousin to the future presidents of Oberlin (James H. Fairchild, 1866-1889) and Berea College (Edward Henry Fairchild, 1869-1889). The same year Darwin James began a successful life in politics and public service. He first held the post of President of the New York Board of Trade and Transportation from 1858-1864, then became the Brooklyn Park Commissioner, 1876-1882. In 1881, he was among the founding members of the Anti-Monopoly League in New York. He won election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1883 as a Republican from Brooklyn. Elected twice to serve the people of his district, James left the House in 1887. James continued on the Board of Indian Commissioners until his death, and also was a member of the U.S. Senate's Commission on Foreign Relations. A trustee for Berea College from 1893-1898, he also served on the Board of Directors at Lincoln Memorial University, starting in 1897, the year the school was founded in Harrogate, Tennessee. Darwin Rush James died on 19 November 1908 from a case of acute nervous indigestion, being ill for only two days. He was survived by his widow and their seven children.