James Chamberlin was born on June 27, 1836, in Union County, Pennsylvania, to John and Elizabeth Chamberlin. His father was a farmer who probably died in the 1850s. Chamberlin grew up and attended school in Kelly, Pennsylvania, before enrolling at Harvard University. He graduated in 1859 and began practicing law in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. By 1860, he owned $5,000 of real estate.

 

He enlisted in the Union army on April 20, 1861, and he mustered in as a sergeant in Company G of the 4^th Pennsylvania Infantry. He mustered out on July 27, 1861, when his term of enlistment expired. He returned to the Union army in August 1861, receiving a commission as a captain in Company D of the 52^nd Pennsylvania Infantry. The regiment took part in the Battle of Williamsburg and the Battle of Seven Pines. He resigned on May 11, 1863. Finally, on June 23, 1863, he received a commission as a colonel in the 28^th Pennsylvania Militia Infantry. The regiment mustered out on July 28, 1863.

 

He moved to Nashville, Tennessee, around October 1863. He married Adelaide Nichol in 1868, and they had at least six children: Sallie, born around 1869; William, born around 1870; James, born around 1871; Bessie, born around 1874; Lucy, born around 1877; Mary, born around 1879. They lived in Nashville, and Chamberlin continued his work as a lawyer.

 

Chamberlin supported the Republican Party, and he briefly served on the Nashville City Council. Nonetheless, he championed reconciliation with former Confederates. At a meeting of Union veterans in 1868, he declared that the “prosperity and future greatness of our country now depends mainly upon the promotion of peace, harmony and good will toward all men.” He expressed “confidence in the gallantry, honor and integrity of those who were lately arrayed against us in battle,” and he called for “universal amnesty and pardon.”

 

He applied for a federal pension in September 1902 and eventually secured one. A local writer described him as a “man of highest honor and recognized ability.” His health began deteriorating around 1906, and he died in Nashville on July 26, 1909.

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