James Kerr Proudfit (July 24, 1831 – May 30, 1917) was an American military officer, politician, and pioneer of Wisconsin, New Mexico and Kansas.

In Madison, Proudfit partnered with Elias A. Calkins to purchase the Argus and Democrat newspaper from Beriah Brown.

[2][3] In the lead-up to the American Civil War, Proudfit became active in the "Governor's Guard", a militia company composed of several of leading Madisonians, including Lucius and Cassius Fairchild.

[4] The 1st Wisconsin Infantry was sent east to Pennsylvania, then deployed to the vicinity of Hagerstown, Maryland, where they engaged Stonewall Jackson's brigade of Confederate militia at the Battle of Hoke's Run.

The 12th Wisconsin Infantry mustered into federal service in October 1861, and was sent south to Kansas, performing guard duty at various points around the state through all of 1862.

The 12th Wisconsin assaulted Kennesaw Mountain, then engaged in skirmishes along the Chattahoochee River, fighting over trench lines approaching the city of Atlanta.

After reaching Savannah, they turned north into the Carolinas, capturing several of the major cities en route to the end of the war.

For his meritorious service, Proudfit was granted an honorary brevet to the rank of brigadier general, retroactive to March 13, 1865.

[2] For the next several years, Proudfit engaged in business with the Madison Mutual Insurance Company, but returned to public office in 1872, when he was appointed surveyor general of the New Mexico Territory by President Ulysses S. Grant.

[10] On September 20, 1855, James Kerr Proudfit married Emelie Teresa Kreuz, a Bohemian immigrant, at Delafield, Wisconsin.

Proudfit's wife, Emelie, left their home late at night on April 28, 1884, and was not seen again, with some speculating that she committed suicide.