James Landrum Webb

James Landrum Webb (November 12, 1854 – October 1, 1930) was an American politician and jurist.

Early life Webb was born on November 12, 1854, in Cleveland County, North Carolina, United States. His father was a Baptist minister. He studied at Wake Forest University for three and a half years before returning to Cleveland County to assist Plato Durham in editing The Shelby Banner during the Reconstruction era. Webb then studied law under Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Richmond Mumford Pearson before becoming licensed to practice law in 1877. The following year he married K. L. Andrews and opened a law practice with Durham. He later started a law firm with his brother, Edwin Y. Webb.

Political and judicial career Webb was a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected Mayor of Shelby, North Carolina, in 1880. In 1883 he was elected to the North Carolina Senate, holding that office until President Grover Cleveland appointed him as a postal inspector in 1885. He served in that capacity for six months, and in 1887 he was reelected to the Senate and served as its president pro tempore. In 1892 North Carolina Governor Thomas Michael Holt appointed Webb as a district solicitor, filling in a vacancy. He was subsequently elected to keep the post. Pursuant to his duties as solicitor and judge, Webb visited every county in North Carolina to try and hear cases. He was continuously reelected to the judicial office, never facing any challenger in the Democratic primary. In 1928 Gardner was elected Governor of North Carolina. Webb became a leading figure in Gardner's nascent political organization, dubbed the Shelby Dynasty.

In early 1930 Webb declared that he would retire from his judicial post in December due to health problems. In September he began experiencing heart trouble. He died on October 1, 1930, at his home in Shelby.