His uncle, also John Coles, had inherited land in what was Goochland County but became Albemarle and even later Nelson Counties, and one of his sons, Edward Coles (this man's cousin), became the secretary to President James Madison and later moved to the Illinois Territory, freed his slaves, and served as Governor of Illinois before moving to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and raising a family.
According to different accounts, his mother was the sister of a former member of the Queen's Guards[2] or a beauty descended from the Beekman family of New York City.
Ultimately, his father would be defeated for re-election by fellow Democratic-Republican Matthew Clay, who criticized the elder Coles for not marrying a Virginia woman.
When Walter was seven years old, his family moved to Pittsylvania County, where his father inherited land, then operated plantations using enslaved labor.
In any event, after a private education suitable to his class, Walter Coles attended Hampden-Sydney College, where he was a member of the debating society.
Because of those deaths, Walter Coles inherited nine slaves and 1,240 acres of land in Pittsylvania County by the time he returned to Virginia after his discharge.
In that year, Pittsylvania County voters elected him to represent them (part time) in the Virginia House of Delegates, though he then served only a single term.
[10][1] In April 1835, Coles, a Democrat, defeated incumbent Whig Thomas Davenport for a seat in the United States House of Representatives.
In the 24th Congress (1835-1837), Coles became the ranking member on the select committee to examine the high tariffs imposed by foreign governments on American tobacco.
[1] Although Coles spoke rather infrequently in Congress, he did introduce a resolution and made a speech urging the House to table any petition related to the abolition of slavery or to the buying, selling, trading and transportation of slaves.