James Ware Bradbury (June 10, 1802 – January 6, 1901) was an American attorney and politician from Maine.

[1][3] Among his classmates were Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Josiah S. Little, Jonathan Cilley, Nathaniel Hawthorne, John Stevens Cabot Abbott, and George B.

[1] During his college years, Bradbury also developed a friendship with Franklin Pierce, a member of Bowdoin's Class of 1824.

While teaching school, he began to study law with attorneys Rufus McIntire of Parsonfield and Ether Shepley of Portland.

[1] During his career as an attorney, Bradbury practiced at different times in partnership with Horatio D. Bridge, Richard D. Rice, Lot M. Morrill, Joseph H. Meserve, and his son, James W. Bradbury Jr.[1] In the late 1830s, he lobbied the Maine Legislature for passage of the charter for the Portland, Saco and Portsmouth Railroad.

[1] In the senate, Bradbury also oversaw passage of the first bill appropriating funds for improving the Kennebec River.

[1] Bradbury continued practicing law until well into his nineties, earning a reputation for attention to detail and effective courtroom advocacy.

[7] According to biographer and historian Edward Stanwood, Franklin Pierce's selection as the Democratic nominee for president in 1852 was the result of a plan originated by Bradbury.