James Phelan, Jr. was a nineteenthcentury lawyer and politician from Tennessee. He served as a United States Congressman from Tennessee, representing the tenth district.
Phelan was born in Aberdeen, Mississippi to James Phelan, Sr., a member of the Confederate Congress, and Eliza J Phelan. He was of Irish descent on his fathers side, and Scottish descent on his mother side. He attended various schools. In 1874 he went abroad, and in 1878 received his Ph.D from the University of Leipzig, having written his dissertation on the life and works of Philip Massinger. Returning to the United States, he married Mary Early of Virginia, with whom he had three children.
Source: Wikipedia