James Graham Fair

James Graham Fair

James Graham Fair (born December 3, 1831 near Belfast , County Tyrone , † December 28, 1894 in San Francisco , California ) was a Northern Irish American politician . Between 1881 and 1887 he represented the state of Nevada in the US Senate .

Career

In 1843, James Fair and his parents came to the United States from their Northern Irish homeland, where they settled on a farm in Illinois . He attended the local schools and moved to California in 1849, where he participated in the gold rush at that time until 1860. He then moved to Virginia City , where he got into the silver mining business. He also ran a stamp mill in the area . In 1867 he became head of the Hale and Norcross Mine in Virginia City. Together with some partners he became a major shareholder in Comstock Lodge Mines. All of the partners became very rich. Fair also worked in the railway business and in the real estate industry. He expanded his business to San Francisco and the American west coast. In addition to these activities, Fair owned the Nevada Bank of San Francisco together with a partner .

Politically, James Fair was a member of the Democratic Party . In 1880 he was elected to the United States Senate by the Nevada Assembly , where he succeeded William Sharon on March 4, 1881 , who was also one of his business rivals in Virginia City. Since he was not re-elected in 1886, he had to leave Congress on March 3, 1887 . He then moved to San Francisco, where he continued his business career. He died there on December 28, 1894.

Web links

• James Graham Fair in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)