James Hopkins Adams (March 15, 1812 – July 13, 1861) was an American politician who served as the 66th governor of South Carolina from 1854 to 1856.

[1][3] In 1832, he joined the South Carolina Nullification Convention which deliberated until 1833 on whether states could nullify federal laws.

He served as a brigadier general of the South Carolina Militia.

[4] In 1854, Adams was elected the 66th Governor of South Carolina, a position he held through December 1856.

Colonel Warren Adams, of the Confederate States Army, who was in command of Battery Wagner, South Carolina during the American Civil War.