James Barker Edmonds

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James Barker Edmonds (1832 - 1900) was president of the board of commissioners for the District of Columbia from 1883 to 1886.

Edmonds was born May 20, 1832, in Saratoga County, New York. He began the study of the law early, and was only 21 when he was admitted to the New York State bar in 1853 and entered practice. Three years later, in 1856, Edmonds relocated to Iowa City, Iowa, then the capital of the state, where he opened a law partnership with Charles T. Ransom and grew the firm into one of the most prestigious and wealthy in the Midwest.

Edmonds successfully practiced law in Iowa for 19 years, but in 1875 his poor health force him to relocate to Washington, D.C., where he settled into a retirement from the legal practice but remained a sought-after consultant for other attorneys in the city.

died at his residence, 1625 K street, northwest, at 7 o'clock, December 29, 1900. Mr. Edmonds was in his sixty-ninth year and had been in poor health for some time. He leaves a widow but no children. The funeral and interment will take place in Washington.

When former Louisiana Senator Joseph Rodman West resigned from the presidency of the D.C. Board of Commissioners in 1883 (although West remained the board's Republican commissioner until 1885), President Chester A. Arthur nominated Edmonds to serve as the board's Democratic commissioner and its chair. Edmonds served as chair of the commission from March 3, 1883 to April 1, 1886, at which time both his presidency and his term as a commissioner expired. President Grover Cleveland offered him reappointment, but Edmonds turned it down. According to the Washington Post, "Mr. Edmonds was one of the most efficient and popular officials of those who have presided over the affairs of the district, and his refusal to accept a renomination for office was greatly regretted."[1]