Return To Private Life
Ray returned to his law practice which he moved to Indianapolis, after his term as governor. He found it difficult to find clients and public dislike for him did not fade. He ran for Clerk of Marion County in 1831 but was overwhelmingly defeated. He ran for Congress in 1837, but was soundly defeated by William Herod, 5,888–9,635. He attempted to run again in 1833, but dropped out after his inability to win became apparent.
His treatment led him to become even more firm in his views, which further hurt his standing. His behavior only worsened the situation; he was known to walk with a cane, for appearance only, and stop in the street and write in the air with it for no apparent reason. He ran advertisements in the newspaper offering to sell a "tavern-stand", a farm he did not own, and offering to construct a railroad from Charlestown, South Carolina to Indianapolis. He attempted a business venture and opened what he called at "Law, conveyancing, writing, abstract-making, land-agency, general and emigrants' intelligence and counsel office." The business soon folded for lack of customers. He had few friends and most people believed he had become mentally deranged. He took a trip to Wisconsin in 1848 and stopped in Cincinnati, Ohio, before returning home. There he developed cholera and he died on August 4, 1848, aged 54, and was buried in Spring Grove Cemetery.
Read more about this topic: James B. Ray
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