James HARPER, Congress, PA (1780-1873)

HARPER, James, a Representative from Pennsylvania; born in Castlederg, County Tyrone, Ireland, March 28, 1780; immigrated to the United States and settled in Philadelphia, Pa.; attended the public schools; engaged in the manufacture of brick and from 1820 to 1830 in the wholesale grocery trade; elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Congresses (March 4, 1833-March 3, 1837); was not a candidate for renomination in 1836; resumed the manufacture of brick until he retired in 1869; member of the board of guardians of the poor and of the board of prison inspectors; died in Philadelphia, Pa., March 31, 1873; interment in Laurel Hill Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present